A New Start at Goode
by freezingpizza14
Summary: Percy, Thalia, and Nico attend Goode High, where Percy meets Annabeth, the daughter of his father's nemesis, two years after losing his girlfriend. Now Percy, Thalia, and Nico battle the drama of high school romance, enemies, and their controlling fathers.
1. Prologue

***My first story about our favorite heroes as regular mortals. No demigods, gods, or monsters. **

**Warning: prologue will be Percy/Rachel. Sorry this prologue is kinda depressing. If I continue this story it won't be like this.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing of Rick Riordan's.* **

*Prologue*

"Percy?"

I heard her call my name, but I didn't turn. I couldn't.

"Percy?" This voice belonged to Nico. I knew him and Thalia would come looking for me, even if I didn't want them to. I wanted them to go away. I wanted everyone and everything to go away and be left alone.

Of course, maybe I should have chosen a spot different than the place where they found her body . . . .

"Percy?" Thalia said gently, her and Nico walking to my side. "Come home. We miss you."

"You can't stand here forever," Nico added, his voice equally as soft.

"What's the point?" I whispered. Rachel was dead. What was the point of going home and pretending everything was okay?

"Sally brought blue cookies for you," Thalia coaxed. "And we know you can't resist those."

"I don't care about stupid cookies, Thalia," I snapped.

But Thalia wouldn't listen. Neither would Nico. She and Nico each grabbed my arms and steered me forward where my car was waiting. This somewhat shook me back to reality.

"You drove my car?"

Nico grinned. "Don't worry, we didn't scratch her. Well, Thalia almost did, trying to race that old man, but . . . "

Thalia smacked the back of his head. "Shut up. The car is fine, and that old man was asking for it."

Despite my mood, I couldn't help but ask, "What, did he 'look at you wrong?'"

"Yes," Thalia huffed.

"That was because he had a glass eye!" Nico exclaimed.

"So?"

Nico and I laughed at Thalia's stubbornness. Then it hit me: I was laughing. Maybe I could get through this. Maybe there was hope, if I had Nico and Thalia at my side. And my mother. I'd once learned that even after someone dies, the world around you keeps going. I knew that, I just never thought of it like that, from that perspective, until now. Weird.

Suddenly all of our moods sobered.

"Percy . . ." Thalia started.

"I know, Thals." It's going to be okay. She's in a better place now. You're so strong. These things I've been hearing since two o' clock last night, and was getting quite sick of hearing them.

Thalia and Nico knew this, so they kept silent as we walked back to the car arm in arm, and I was grateful.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

When we finally returned home, we found our fathers waiting for us.

My father, or Poseidon, as he called himself, was wearing his usual business suit, his black hair and beard neatly trimmed. I got my black hair and green eyes from him.

Thalia's father, Zeus, was in a crisp pin-striped suit, his hair and beard neatly trimmed like my father's.

Nico's father, Hades, was wearing a black suit with a blood red tie. I'd be lying if I didn't say Hades was my least favorite out of the three.

It was also safe to say none of us really liked our fathers. Thalia's mother died when she was little, as did Nico's mother and older sister Bianca. My mother lived on the Upper East Side of Manhattan with my step-father Paul. Nico and Thalia loved her almost as much as I did. She was the sweetest lady in the world. Thalia, Nico and I were next in line to take over our fathers' business. We didn't really have a say in the matter. They owned most of New York, and came from "big money." We tried to ignore that fact.

Poseidon cleared his throat. "Perseus." I scowled at my real name, which no one used except my father, and sometimes Zeus and Hades if they had to.

Poseidon continued. "We're sorry for your loss. Miss Dare was an extravagent girl."

My scowl didn't waver. I didn't want to talk about it. I just wanted to sit and relax and watch a crappy movie with Thalia and Nico like we used to, throwing popcorn and making fun of the movie.

Thalia spoke before I could. "Well, he doesn't want to talk right now, so can you please just leave?"

The three scowled, and we scowled back. This is normal for us.

"Alright, but I will have your mother check up on you," Poseidon said to me.

"Fine," I said, and they left.

Thalia raised an eyebrow. "Okay, is it just me, or were they a lot easier to get rid of than usual?"

Nico laughed, but I didn't smile. Nico then stopped laughing.

"Come on," he said.

"Movie time?" Thalia grabbed my arm. Nico grabbed my other.

"Movie time," Nico and I agreed.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Rachel's funeral went by quickly. I was barely there for half of it. I zoned in and out throughout the service.

All I could see was her face in my mind, her laugh, her mane of red hair, her smile. The way her eyes twinkled when she was painting. She loved to paint. I still have a picture she'd made of me and her in my bedroom.

Thalia and Nico stood beside me. Sally, my mother, and Paul stood behind us. My mom's hands were on my shoulders.

"Let this young lady rest in peace, and may God lift her soul." I couldn't bring myself to look at her coffin. I couldn't, or I'd start to cry.

Why that night? Our night? It seemed like a blur now, when I replay the memories of that night over and over again in my mind. Waiting for her to show, panicking when she didn't. Going to her house. Her parents telling me she wasn't home. Calling the police. And finally, sitting in mute shock as Thalia drove to the park where Rachel's body had been found . . .

This was torment. I just wanted it all to end.

***When chapter 1 starts it won't be depressing, only slightly at times when Rachel is mentioned. This isn't a sad story.***


	2. Chapter 1: A New Start

***Story is rated T for slight language and some material may not be suitable for kids under 13. Though sorry, no lemons, and no rated M scenes will be in this story.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing of Rick Riordan's.* **

*Chapter 1: A New Start*

*2 years later*

(Percy)

I think math had to be the most boring subject in the world.

Thalia, Nico, and I had tutors, as we were homeschooled. But since Thalia and I were eighteen and Nico was only fifteen, he had to study different material than us. He often complains that it makes him feel dumb. Thalia and I tell him he is dumb, then he throws a pillow at our faces. Got to love family.

But anyway, so as the teacher talked on and on about variables or whatever it was called, I was slowly drifting off. Maybe Mr. Makes was too into his lesson to notice, or maybe he just didn't care. Either way, pretty soon I could feel my eyes getting heavier.

I dreampt that I was in a really tall building, the Empire State Building. As I was riding up the elevator it started going faster, until I had to hold on to the bar to keep from tumbling over. And the strange thing was, I wasn't even afraid.

I jerked awake. The entire side of my face was covered by drool, and Mr. Makes was glaring at me.

"This is the third time you've fallen asleep this week, Perseus." Did I mention I hate it when he calls me that? He does it often, I think because he knows it gets on my nerves.

"Sorry, Mr. Makes," I muttered. Suddenly, Nico came busting in, saving me from getting a lecture.

"Our-dads-want-to-talk-to-us," he huffed, hands on his knees.

"Why?" I asked. "And geez, Nico, did you run all the way here?"

"Just-up-stairs," he grunted, trying to catch his breath. "Said it was-important."

I looked at my teacher.

"Go," Mr. Makes sighed. "You're dismissed." So I followed Nico to the living room where Poseidon, Zeus, Hades, and a nervous-looking Thalia were waiting.

"What's up?" I asked.

"We'd like to talk to all three of you," Zeus started. "It's about something important."

"Oh, it must be if you traveled all the way here to tell us instead of sending your assistant," Thalia said in a sarcastic voice.

Zeus ignored his daughter's remark. "We, Poseidon, Hades, and myself, have been talking. We've also been talking with Sally, and, well . . ."

"And what?" I didn't like where this was going.

"We've all decided that you should attend at least one year of high school."

"What!" the three of us said in unison. Thalia and Nico more of shock, me more of happiness. I haven't been to a public school since sixth grade, when I was I was twelve. Thalia, Nico, and myself were homeschooled and being prepped to take over the business, going to business meetings in Japan, Greece, Italy, etc.

It was kind of a long story. Nico and Thalia never attended school like me. Nico's older sister Bianca was originally meant to be in the business, but since she died it went down to Nico. Him and Thalia have been in this since they were small.

My dad didn't find out about me until I was twelve. My mom finally spoke up and told him, and he insisted I be pulled out of school to learn how to run the business.

So, here we are, and I was going back to school. Instead of having to worry about whether or not people were doing their jobs right, or learning about what to do if this happened, or that happened, or in case the business was about to go bankrupt, we'd worry about homework, tests, quizzes, and best of all, be around other people. I love Nico and Thalia, but it got pretty lonely sometimes with just the three of us (and all of the business people we had to talk to).

"Why do we have to go to school?" Thalia asked. She didn't seem to be complaining, and I knew she was curious as to what school was really like instead of just watching about it on TV and movies.

"We thought it would be good for you," Hades spoke up. "A good change."

I narrowed my eyes. "What do you three get out of this deal?" I asked. There was always a catch with the Big Three. Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades never did something without there being something in it for themselves.

"Nothing," Poseidon lied, which raised our suspicions even more.

"Here," Hades said, handing us three sheets of paper. Class schedules!

"You start Monday," Zeus told us. "Be on your best behavior, how young adults should behave."

"We'll do our best," Thalia murmured, still staring at her schedule.

"Like that's going to happen," Nico snickered. Him, Thalia and I shared grins. If we were going to have the high school experience, we were going to make sure it was a good one.

"Goode High," I read out loud. Huh. This was going to be fun.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

I'd just gotten the chips out when the doorbell rang. Setting the bag down I went to answer it, only to be standing face to face with Silena, Clarisse, Katie, Juniper, Hazel, and Piper.

"Hey." I grinned. But before I could get another sentence out, Silena barreled past me into the house.

"Did you hear who will be attending our school?" She immediately asked.

"Nice to see you too," I joked, closing the door once everyone was inside. I barely saw any of them all summer. Silena took her boyfriend Charlie (everybody else calls him Beckendorf) to Paris, Clarisse spent her summer at some camp for kids who want to join the military, Katie and Juniper went to some nature reserve for animals, and Hazel and Piper were busy with their new boyfriends Frank and Jason. It was kind of sad, because we all knew Leo had a crush on Hazel, but he didn't act on it or acknowledge it because of Frank.

"But seriously, guess," Silena said, opening the bag of Doritos I had left on the counter.

"Um, Santa Clause?" I guessed.

Silena rolled her eyes at me. "Very funny. No, the Big Three's kids."

"Wait, you mean the guys that own like half of Manhattan?" Katie asked.

"Yup! So, apparently their kids-in-training, you know, to take over the business, will be joining us tomorrow for a whole year!"

"How do you find out this stuff?" Clarisse asked.

Silena smiled. "I have my ways. And that's not even the best part. Everyone's excited that you and him will be attending the same school, Annabeth."

"Who?" I asked.

"Percy! Duh!" Silena munched on a chip.

"Percy . . ." For such a 'brainiac' I was feeling pretty moronic right now.

"Percy Jackson," Silena said slowly. "You know, your mother's enemy's son."

"Oh." Right. I'd forgotten. My mother, Athena, completely hated Poseidon after her architecture beat his. Ever since then they've been in a row, competing to see who was better.

"You mean the guy that lost his girlfriend two years ago?" That had been awful. It was on the news. Rachel Dare had been murdered, her body was found at the Manhattan park. Ever since then barely anybody goes there anymore, and I imagine Percy just stayed clear of it completely. I felt a twinge of sympathy. If I ever lost someone I loved that way . . .

"Yeah," Piper spoke up. "Poor guy was sixteen. He's eighteen now, I think."

"And why are they coming to school?" Juniper asked.

Clarisse shrugged. "Don't know. Who cares. Lets just enjoy our last day of freedom before hell high starts back."

As we sat around talking and eating all of the Doritos (my step-mother would be angry, but I didn't care) I couldn't help but wonder if Percy or the other two missed having a friend that wasn't related to them.

***What do you think? Continue, or a lost cause?***


	3. Chapter 2:Goode High

*Chapter 2: Goode High*

(Percy)

After trying unsuccessfully to get Nico and Thalia out of bed, I went and poured ice cold water into a cup and dumped it on their faces.

"Hey! What the Hades?" Nico sputtered. As a laugh, whenever we want to say "hell" we'll say Hades instead. It was an inside joke kind of thing.

"Get up," I said brightly. "Time for school." Then I left to do the same to Thalia.

"Idiot. Get out of my room," she said. Then she threw a pillow at me. I just caught it and threw it back at her.

"If you aren't out of bed in thirty minutes I'm getting more water," I threatened, then left to go make breakfast. Twenty-nine minutes later I had made eggs, toast, and bacon just as Nico and Thalia came downstairs looking like zombies but dressed. Thalia even managed to put her makeup on evenly.

"How did you do this?" Nico groaned. "Getting up before seven should be a crime."

"Because I went to school," I told them, handing them each a plate. I'm used to getting up early anyway when I run. It was a good hobby to have, just to get out. I'd plug my headphones in and run around the block for an hour. It was relaxing, especially after Rachel's death.

"Oh, and Dad wants us to take the Porsche," Thalia told us as we ate.

I frowned. "Why?" I wanted to take my car. It wasn't as flashy, and that was the last thing we needed.

"Poseidon is doing something for your car, getting new stereos, I think." She shrugged.

"Oh." Great. Pretty coincidental timing, Dad.

Nico groaned. "Now everyone will think we're spoiled rich kids showing off our money."

"Who cares what they think," Thalia muttered. "We know who we are, and that's enough. If they can't see that, then boo freaking who." She put down her toast and took each of our hands. "Promise me something, guys. We stick together. No matter what."

I squeezed her hand and smiled. "Of course, Thals. What else is family for?"

"Ditto," said Nico.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

In a strange way, coming back to school was like coming home. I kind of missed the teachers, the students, the drama. It all brought back a sort of stressful excitement.

"Welcome to school, ladies, where we have evil teachers, jocks, preppy students who walk around like they have sticks shoved up their-"

"Clarisse!" Piper interrupted.

"Well, Drew and her posse, anyway," Clarisse muttered under her breath. I groaned. Drew was our absolute nightmare. I wasn't the least bit scared of her, and neither were Clarisse, Silena, or Piper, and we were pretty sure Drew knew that. So she picked on Hazel, Katie, and Juniper because she knew they were more kind and the friendly _won't-hurt-a-fly _type. We had to stop Clarisse from decking her last year, and hope we wouldn't have to do so again this year.

"So, Annabeth, ready to meet Percy?" Silena joked from the backseat of my car.

"I am not going to hate him just because our parents hate each other," I told her, although I was speaking to all of them in general. "If we become friends, great. If not, fine. If he never even talks to me, well, who cares." We got out of the car.

Silena smirked and threw her arm around my shoulders as we walked to the front doors of the school. "Well, you're about to get your chance. Look who just rolled in, in their shiny Porsche." She pointed. We all turned to look as a silver Porsche parked in the parking lot, and three kids got out.

I could hear the girls' gasps behind me crystal clear, as every other student hanging around outside was dead silent. You could hear a pen drop. All eyes were on them, even mine.

The one who got out of the driver's seat must be Thalia. She had dark spiky hair, and was wearing a black T-shirt that said Death to Barbie in blood red letters with a picture of an arrow sticking through the doll's head, black ripped jeans, and converse. Nico was sporting a black jacket, T-shirt, and jeans. And last but not least . . .

"Oh my gosh!" came a squeal from behind me, but I couldn't tell who did it.

Percy was more lightly dressed than the other two, wearing a blue T-shirt, jeans, and sneakers. Each were wearing sunglasses. They seemed oblivious to the stares as they made their way inside. Once they were gone, chatter started up at once.

"Oh my gosh did you see Percy?"

"Totally hot!"

"Nico too!"

"How old is he again?"

"Do you think I can get that chick's number?"

"I should totally invite them to my party this weekend!" This coming from the she-devil herself: Drew. She was wearing a pink top, jeans, and heels, her makeup and hair perfect. We called her The Barbie.

Hmm, Thalia's shirt was coincidentally accurate.

The she-devil turned to us, her lips turning up in a mocking pout. To me it just made her look like a fish. "Oh, don't even think about it. They wouldn't even bother looking at any of you." She eyed me. "Especially a blonde nerd."

Guess it wouldn't be Clarisse that decked her this year. Before I could smack the makeup off that princess wannabe Clarisse and Silena grabbed my arms.

"Come on, girlie," Clarisse muttered. "She's not even worth it. Not yet, anyway."

Turning my back on Drew, the girls and I walked inside to see a crowd loitering around the main office.

"Percy, Thalia, and Nico must be in there," Juniper said. "Come on, lets go to class." Together we hurried off, but not before I caught a glimpse of Percy through the window.

His glasses were off, and his eyes were greener than I've ever seen on anyone. His black hair was dark and messy, and it was obvious he worked out. Right.

Blushing, I tore my eyes from the window and headed to class.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Percy)

Naturally, we got the reaction I'd been expecting.

People stared at us as we exited the car. We huddled close together, trying not to draw attention to ourselves, but of course that was impossible. There were students staring at us in every direction. One group in particular caught my eye. Or, one girl.

Her hair was in perfect blond curls, tan skin, serious face. She looked like she could be a California-type girl, except her eyes ruined the image. They were a dark gray, and they reminded me of storm clouds. I tried not to stare, but it was hard. I kept my eyes forward, hoping she didn't notice me looking. Did she notice me looking?

As we entered the building, Thalia let out a breath of shock. "Oh, wow."

Nico was equally as awed. "This is so cool."

The school colors, white and maroon, were plastered all over the walls with Goode High posters, banners, and _Welcome back to Goode! _signs. Their trophy case was huge, and one caught my eye. A swimmers trophy. Interesting. Maybe I should try out for the team. I loved to swim, ever since I was a little kid.

We found the main office and walked inside. Teachers lounging around with fresh coffee in their hands and gossiping turned to look at us when we entered.

"Holy Zeus I'm already getting sick of the staring," Thalia muttered. Another inside joke, don't ask. But she was right. People were crowded outside to get a look at us, peering in through the window.

"Dears, no sunglasses in the building," the woman sitting at the desk said. She was really pretty, with blonde hair pulled up into a bun, blue eyes, and a kind smile. We took off our sunglasses, and the woman, who's name tag read Kelly Ker, gasped. "Oh, yes, the Big Three's children. Hold on a second." She typed something on her keyboard. "Ah, here we go. Do you already have schedules?" We nodded. "Good. And Mr. diAngelo, since you're starting sophomore year you only have two classes with your cousins. As for you two, you will have to take the graduation test at the end of the year if you want to graduate."

"Ha, sucks for you guys." Nico smirked at us.

"Is there any questions? Do you know where to go?" Mrs. Ker asked.

I looked at the other two, who appeared just as lost as I did. "Um, not really. Could you possibly get someone to show us around?" Like that pretty blonde girl with the gray eyes, maybe . . .

"Of course," Mrs. Ker said. "I-"

"I'll do it!" a voice chirped. We turned. A girl was standing by the door. Her chocolate brown hair hung in waves down her back, and her skin was a tan moca color. "My name's Drew," the girl said, smiling warmly at us. She stepped forward and hugged Thalia, who kind of shrunk back. Then she hugged Nico. Was this girl always like this? When she hugged me, she held on for just a second too long. She then looked at Mrs. Ker and said, "I can do this."

Mrs. Ker smiled. "Thank you, Drew."

"Mm-hm. Come on, honey. I'll show you around." Drew linked her arm through mine and practically dragged me out the door with Nico and Thalia following.

People parted as we walked, some gasping in disbelief. I guess Drew was one of the "populars." And those were the kind you sometimes had to watch out for.

"So what's your first class?" Drew asked, snatching my schedule out of my hand. "Oh, great! We have first and third period together!"

Yay, I thought sarcastically.

"What about you, Thalia?" Drew asked, though it seemed she was only asking to get on Thalia's good side.

Thalia raised an eyebrow. I could tell she and Drew were going to be at each other's throats before the year was up. "I have all classes with Percy except second, fourth, and sixth." Meaning, I'll be there first and third so don't try anything funny.

"And you, Nico?" Drew asked, battering her eyes at him.

"Uh . . ." Nico blinked. "I have . . . uh . . ."

Thalia kicked him.

"Ow!" he hollered. "Um, I have fifth and seventh with Percy and Thalia, but that's it. I'm a sophomore."

"Oh, don't worry, sophomore year is so much fun," Drew reassured. "But senior parties are the place to be."

Party? We've never been to a party that didn't involve our dads and the business.

"Speaking of parties," Drew continued, "I'm having one this weekend. Kind of like a . . . welcome to senior year gig. But you're welcome to come too, Nico," she added.

"Thanks," Nico muttered. But he, Thalia and I shared a look of agreement. We promised our dads we would make the most of it. So we will.

After Drew showed us the cafeteria, library, school store to buy snacks and such, Nico said, "Well, this has been fun, but I've got to get to class, so, um, bye."

Momentarily releasing Drew's death grip from my arm, Thalia and I both hugged him.

"Good luck, man," I told him. "Me and Thalia will be around if you need us."

"We'll see you at lunch, okay?" said Thalia. The three of us just stood there for a moment. It was hard, seperating. We were always together. Now we had the chance to be around people our own ages, and suddenly we weren't so sure.

"Go," Nico said softly. "I'll be okay." Then he shouldered his backpack, turned around, and walked to class, ignoring people's stares around him.

Thalia sighed. "Let's go." She grabbed my arm. Drew grabbed my other. I'd forgotten she was there.

"He'll be okay," Drew said. "High school isn't that bad."

Yeah, I thought. But it is if you've never been to a regular school. With both girls on each arm, though Drew's was mostly forced, we went to first period, which was Literature.

And I couldn't believe it.

The blonde haired girl with the gray eyes was in this class.


	4. Chapter 3: Introductions

***All names (and most classes) are made up. Most of Percy's and Thalia's classes are classes I will be taking next year, since I'll be a senior (Woo hoo).**

*Chapter 3: Introductions*

(Annabeth)

As Silena, Clarisse, Hazel and I walked into first period, Literature, I found Beckendorf and Leo waiting. I sighed in relief. Thank goodness, I had friends in this class. But Hazel and Leo in the same class, without Frank? Oh no . . .

"Annabeth!" Leo waved me over, and I sat next to him.

"Hey, guys," I said.

"Sup, Annabeth." Beckendorf grinned. He kissed Silena, and she giggled.

"Nothing, except wishing I could have slept in longer." I yawned. I hadn't gotten very much sleep last night. Lately I've been having nightmares about spiders. I shuddered. I hated spiders.

"I hear you," Clarisse muttered, putting her head down. "I'm taking a nap. Don't wake me unless there's a fire or someone's about to get punched." We laughed, but left her alone.

"So how was your summer?" Leo asked Hazel.

Hazel blushed. "Good," she said in a small voice. "And you?"

"Good." They were silent. There was an uncomfortable pause.

"Well well well, look what the Barbie dragged in," Silena said. We turned.

Drew was dragging Percy into the classroom, who's other arm was linked with Thalia's.

"Poor guys," Leo said, "They've already been exposed to Drew's fake claws."

"Now she'll never leave them alone," I added, feeling sympathetic.

In the front of the room, Drew called out loudly so that everyone would hear, "Mrs. Powell, this is Percy and Thalia, new students." She tightened her grip on Percy's arm, and I saw him wince.

Mrs. Powell, the teacher, looked over Percy's and Thalia's schedules. "Alright then," she said. "Welcome to Goode High. Hope it's a stretch to homeschooling."

I saw Percy and Thalia both blush. "We hope so," Thalia sighed.

"Have a seat anywhere." Mrs. Powell gestures around the room. "There's plenty of seats to go around." She smiled, and I knew I would like her.

Before Drew could drag Percy over to sit with her and her friends, he gently shook her off and said, "Thanks for showing us around."

Thalia grinned. "Yeah, it was . . . fun." It was obvious she thought of Drew as pestilent, and that they clearly did not like each other. Red faced, Drew turned around and walked to her seat.

Then, somehow, Percy and I locked eyes. He didn't look away, and neither did I. Then he started walking forward. Thalia raised an eyebrow but silently trailed along.

Percy sat in the desk right next to me. Thalia sat in front of him.

"Hi," he said. It took me a moment to realize he was speaking to me. His green eyes were mesmerizing.

"Uh, hey," I whispered. I cleared my throat and tried to make my voice higher. "You're Percy Jackson, right?"

"Yeah. And you're . . . Annabeth? Athena's daughter?" I was aware of my friends behind me, trying not to stare but hanging on to every word of our conversation. I could practically feel Silena's excitement. Out of the corner of my eye I saw her squirm in her seat.

"Yeah. Welcome to Goode. I see you've already met Drew."

Percy smiled. "Yeah. What a Barbie."

"That's what we call her!" I laughed. "She's awful."

Percy laughed, too. "Oh, and uh, this is Pinecone Face." Thalia smacked his head. "Ow! I mean Thalia."

Thalia turned to me. "Ignore him, he's always like this. And as for 'Pinecone Face,' well, it's an inside joke kind of thing." She held out her hand. "Thalia Grace."

I took her hand. "Annabeth Chase."

"Hey, our last names rhyme! And if that girl is your enemy too, then we're going to be great friends."

"Oh, you have no idea," I told her. "Drew is our constant nightmare. And, um, these are just a few of my many friends of misfits."

"Hey!" they chorused behind me.

"This is Silena, her boyfriend Beckendorf, Leo, Hazel, and that's Clarisse over there sleeping."

"Hi!" Silena squeaked. "So nice to meet you!"

"Hey," Percy and Thalia said.

"Where's Nico?" Leo asked.

"He's a sophomore," Percy answered, a flash of worry crossing his face. "He has different classes."

"So are you two seniors then?" Hazel asked. Now that I broke the ice on introductions they were starting to talk more.

"No, we're sophomores with senior classes," Thalia muttered.

Beckendorf grinned at her sarcastic tone. "You're alright, Grace."

The bell rang, making me jump. I'd completely lost track of time. Percy and Thalia shifted in their seats.

"What was that bell for?" Thalia asked.

"At 8:25 the bell rings. That's when class starts."

Mrs. Powell closed the door. "Good morning, class. For those who didn't care to learn my name, it's Mrs. Powell. I hope this year will be a good one, since it's your last."

Everyone cheered except Thalia and Percy. I caught his eye, and he just shrugged. For them it would be their first and last.

For the entire period we went over what we were going to learn for the year while the teacher passed out the textbooks. I was looking through mine when something suddenly landed on my desk. A folded up piece of paper. I opened it.

_'Having fun over there reading your textbook? -Percy' _

I smirked and responded: _'Not as much fun as you over there passing notes. -Annabeth' _I threw the note in his direction, not really paying attention to where I threw it. It bounced off his head and landed on his desk. He gave me a smoldering look, and I choked back laughter. He scribbled something and threw it back.

_'Ha-ha, touche, blondie. And what's up with throwing paper at my head?' _

I covered my mouth with the back of my hand and replied, _'Call me blondie again and you'll be getting worse than paper thrown at you. And it was an accident.' _I tossed it onto his desk. He read it and smiled.

_'Then how about Gray Eyes? And sure it was. Just like this was.' _As soon as I read the second part something bounced off my head. A paper ball. I looked over at Percy, who might've been the picture of perfect innocence if he wasn't trying - and failing - not to laugh.

My eyes narrowed, I wrote, _'Ok Jackson, you're asking for it.' _I tossed it to him. Another laugh. He replied and threw it back. We continued to do this for the rest of the period. The loud shrill of the bell caused us both to jump.

"Guess that's our cue," Percy said, grinning.

"So what's your next class?" Silena asked as the eight of us walked out.

"Math," Percy grumbled. "Ugh."

"Me too," I said.

"And me," Silena added.

"And me, too," Leo said.

Thalia groaned. "I have Biology. See you guys later," she told us before turning to Percy.

"Don't get into too much trouble," he warned her.

Thalia put on a fake innocent smile. "Me? Get in trouble?" She hugged him, then went off to class.

Second period went by slowly. The teacher, Mr. Hendricks, did the same thing as Mrs. Powell, talking about what we would be learning in the year, how we should behave, etc. Occasionally though, I found myself glancing at Percy. He seemed . . . completely relaxed. Comfortable.

I looked down at my math workbook, flipping through the pages. All of this I already knew. I would breeze through it no problem.

This period seemed to blow by, too. Before I knew it, the bell had rung. Sighing, I picked up my books. Unfortunately one decided to be stubborn and slip from my arms and fall to the floor. Before I could bend to pick it up, Percy was already there, grabbing the book for me.

"Thanks," I said, taking the book from him. "Having to carry around all of my textbooks is a pain."

"Tell me about it," Percy muttered. Together, we walked out. I was glad we were talking as friends, and not echoing our parents and hating each other.

"When I was homeschooled," Percy continued, "all of my teachers had us do the work then, we didn't have homework or anything."

"Was it hard? Being homeschooled, I mean. Is it weird being here?" I shut my mouth then. I didn't want to sound like a creeper, asking all of these personal questions.

Percy laughed. "Nah. But I went to school before my dad pulled me out, so I'm more used to it than Nico or Thalia." After that we lapsed into silence, but it wasn't awkward. It was the kind of comfortable silence that didn't need to be broken.

Before I knew it, we were at my third period class, Chemistry. I looked at Percy questioningly. "How did you know this was my next class?"

"I saw your schedule in your binder." Percy smirked. "I didn't even know where it is, you led the way and I followed . . ." He scratched his head. "Wow, that sounded creepy."

It was my turn to laugh. "Thanks for walking me to class, then," I said. "Is this your class, too?"

He shook his head. "Nope. I got . . . Economics with Raves."

"Oh, you mean Ms. Raves? Yeah, she's great. You'll like her."

"Cool." We just stood there for a moment, unsure of what to say or do. Then Percy held up a hand and said, "Well, see you later then, Gray Eyes."

I shook my head.

"No? Okay, I'll keep trying, then." He smiled. "Later." Then he turned around and walked off. I just stared after him, wondering how we could have gotten along so easily when our parents couldn't even stand being in the same room together.


	5. Chapter 4: Meeting the Misfits

***Thank all of you so much for your support on this story. It means alot. Sorry it's kind of slow, the story'll pick up to a faster pace soon.* **

*Chapter 4: Meeting the Misfits*

(Percy)

After walking Annabeth to class, I headed to mine, which thankfully had Thalia in it. Unfortunately it also had Drew, and I was dreading having to talk to her. She'd seemed nice enough when she showed Nico, Thalia, and I around the school, but I knew better. I also knew I had to watch Thalia, she and Drew had clashed the minute they saw each other.

I took my seat next to Thalia, and she smiled at me. "Hey, Kelp Head. How was second period with Annabeth?"

"Fine," I said.

Thalia then turned to look at me, her eyebrows raised. "You're blushing!"

"What?" I automatically raised a hand to my cheek. "No I'm not!"

"Yes you are!" she insisted. "You like her."

"I just _met _her!" I hissed as the class started. Thalia let it go as the teacher started talking, but I knew she'd bring it up again later.

I was right. At the end of the period, as we were packing up to leave, Thalia turned to me and said, "So, when are you going to ask her out?"

I breathed out through my nose. "I don't know what you're talking about." Then I walked out. Annabeth had been right, Ms. Raves was an awesome teacher.

Thalia caught up with me. "Oh, come on, I-" But a voice cut her off.

"Percy!" We turned. Drew and her friends were walking towards us.

I put on a smile I hope didn't look forced. "Hello, Drew." Thalia just nodded her greeting, her eyes narrowed.

"Hey, I didn't get the chance to talk to you last period," Drew said when she'd caught up to us. "About my party this weekend . . ."

"We'll be there," Thalia promised. "But . . . is it okay if we bring some friends?"

Drew's face lit up. "Of course! See you this weekend!" Then she turned and walked off.

I looked at Thalia. "Friends?"

"Annabeth and her group of misfits," she explained.

I glanced behind me, at Drew's retreating figure. "But they hate Drew."

Thalia smirked and crossed her arms. "Exactly."

I laughed. "And Zeus thinks you're sweet and innocent."

"I know right." Still laughing, we walked to our fourth period classes.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Percy)

Lunch was interesting.

As Thalia, Nico, and myself walked into the cafeteria, we just stood there and gaped. The cafeteria was nearly full, every table occupied. Some students were even sitting outside enjoying the sun and warmth before it disappeared for fall.

"This is so insane," Thalia muttered. "There's so many people."

After we got in line and bought our food - we'd crossed the line with our fathers about bringing lunch that had been prepared by a personal chef - we went to find a seat, which didn't really appear to be that difficult. People waved us over and smiled, all trying to get us to sit with them. It was so confusing. Then I saw a familiar face, and I sighed with relief.

"Beckendorf!"

He turned and smiled. "Hey, guys. And you must be Nico. I'm Charles Beckendorf . . . everyone calls me Beckendorf."

"Nice to meet you," Nico said out of habit. Our fathers drilled it into us to be perfectly polite when meeting new people.

Beckendorf raised an eyebrow. "Man, I am gonna teach you how to not be so polite. But not now. Now I gotta get my food before my stomach eats itself."

"Hey, um, just out of curiosity, have you seen Annabeth?" I asked. Thalia didn't say anything, but I could tell she was trying not to smirk.

"Asking for me, are you?" a voice behind us said. I turned, and there was Annabeth.

"Come on," she said. "You can sit with us." She paused. "Unless you want to sit with, uh, Drew."

I quickly shook my head. "Lead the way . . ." I still couldn't think of a good nickname for her. "Annabeth."

She grinned. "Still having trouble making up names, are we?" She grabbed my wrist and tugged me out the door with Nico and Thalia following. Glancing at Annabeth's hand on my wrist, I blushed. Dang. Nico and Thalia were never going to let me forget this. They were probably silently laughing behind me right now. I glanced back at them. They wouldn't meet my eyes and kept bumping into each other.

Definitely laughing at me.

"Annabeth!" a guy said as we neared a tall tree by the school's flag pole. A group of kids were sitting under the shade of the tree. I recognized Silena, Hazel, and Clarisse. Leo was the one who had spoken.

The others I didn't know. Two appeared to be twins, with elfish features and curly hair. Another had blonde hair and blue eyes. He was holding hands with a pretty girl who had choppy brown hair, eyes that changed from green to brown, and wearing a snowboarding jacket. The boy sitting on her right had curly brown hair and a goatee, who was munching on an enchilada like he'd been starving for days. He was also, I noticed, glancing every once in a while at the girl across from him who had brown hair and kind brown eyes. And lastly, a girl with dark brown hair, who was eating an apple. One of the twins kept catching her eye and winking, making her roll her eyes and blush.

Those who I didn't know gasped when they saw us. Their eyes immediately went down to Annabeth's hand on my wrist, then back up to our faces.

"Well hello," one of the twins said. "Big Three trio, right?"

"Connor," Annabeth sighed. "Be nice. This is Percy, Thalia, and Nico."

The twin that had spoken rose to his feet and held out his hand. "Hey," he said. "Welcome to Goode. I'm Connor, the good-looking brother."

"Yeah right," the other guy said. He too rose to his feet. "And before you ask, no, my brother and I aren't twins."

I blinked. "You're not?"

"Nope," the guy said, popping the 'p.' "Travis Stoll and Connor Stoll, at your service."

"Right." Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Well, this is Grover, Juniper, Katie, Jason, and Piper."

Thalia smiled. "Nice to meet you."

"Yeah, they're polite," Beckendorf said as he joined us, sitting next to Silena on the blanket they shared. "A few hours with us should change that."

"And this," Annabeth concluded, "is my merry band of misfits. Sorry if they steal, prank, injure, maim, or cause you any sort of damage or harm."

"We wouldn't do that!" Travis murmured innocently, but I kept my hand in my pocket on my wallet anyway.

We sat down. I was trying to ignore the fact that Annabeth was sitting a few inches away from me. Nico and Thalia were sitting next to me, silent. They didn't know what to say or how to start conversation. Well, with normal teenagers, anyway. I decided to help them out.

"So, you were right," I told Annabeth as she bit into her sandwich.

"What about?" she asked.

"Raves is an awesome teacher," I said as I opened my cookie.

"Told you." Annabeth smirked.

"Whatever. Do you always have to be a wise girl?"

"Do not."

"Do too."

"Do not!"

"Do too," I said under my breath.

Grover laughed. "You two are like an old married couple."

Annabeth and I both froze.

"I was k-kidding," Grover stuttered, his eyes widening at our horror-struck expressions.

The dark haired girl eating the apple, Katie, cleared her throat. "So, are any of you going to try out for the swim team?"

I turned to her, grateful for the topic change. "I am. I love to swim."

"He's a fish," Nico supplied, dodging a piece of my cookie that I threw at him.

This is how we spent the remainder of our lunch, teasing each other and making corny jokes. I liked it, and I could tell Nico and Thalia did, too.


	6. Chapter 5: Seaweed Brain and Wise Girl

***I update on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but school has been keeping me on my toes, so my updates might be a bit off.***

*Chapter 5: Seaweed Brain and Wise Girl*

(Annabeth)

After I'd headed to the locker room for gym to change, I was the first one out. Or so I thought. I heard a splashing sound coming from the pool in the room that was connected to the gymnasium, and I headed in that direction.

I found the gym teacher, Coach Donavan, watching someone do laps in the pool. With a jolt, I realized it was Percy.

Wow, he was fast. It was almost as if he were gliding through the water. When he reached the edge of the pool, he looked up in surprise. "Coach Donavan? You were watching me?"

"Sure. That was some pretty quick swimming there, Jackson." Coach nodded her approval. "Coach Hedge could use you on his swim team."

Percy's eyes widened. "Really?" I could hear the excitement in his voice, like a child that is told by their father that they could have a cookie before dinner.

"Really. Now get out, class is about to start. Go put on some regular clothes."

"Sure, Coach." Percy climbed out of the pool, and I quickly made my way back to the gym and sat on the bleachers, hoping he hadn't seen me.

After the rest of the students had drifted out and sat on the bleachers, Nico, Thalia, and a newly dressed Percy sat beside me.

Thalia sniffed. "Why do you smell like chlorine?" she asked Percy.

"Pool," was all he said. He was still smiling.

"Better the pool than the beach," Nico muttered. "I remember one time he came home smelling like salt water."

"He always smells like that," Thalia added.

"'Cause he's a seaweed brain," I blurted.

Percy raised his eyebrows at me. "Really? Seaweed Brain, Wise Girl?"

"Really? Wise Girl, Seaweed Brain?" I mimicked.

"Touche . . . Blondie." I smacked him on the back of his head.

"Totally worth it," Percy sighed, grinning. Thalia smirked at me.

"Seaweed Brain and Wise Girl." Nico smiled. "Nice."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

After dropping Silena, Katie, and Hazel off at their houses - Clarisse had gotten a ride from her boyfriend Chris, who'd already graduated - I finally made it home. I think I would like it a lot more if I didn't have an uncaring father and an evil step-mother. I loved my two half-brothers Bobby and Matthew though, as devious as they were. Sometimes I think of them as tiny Stolls.

I didn't bother calling out that I was home. My step-mother usually didn't care. She was a housewife, which meant that - unfortunately - she stayed home 24/7. I just couldn't wait to crawl back into bed.

I'd just gotten into my room and closed the door when I heard the wicked witch - I mean my step-mother - call my name. Sighing, I gave my bed a longing look before opening my door and going downstairs.

"Yes?" I sighed.

My step-mother looked up. She was a pretty woman, with brown eyes and red highlighted hair pulled up into a bun. She narrowed her eyes. "It's about time, I thought I was about to have to go upstairs and get you."

Well, sorry for wanting to sleep, I thought crossly. "What do you want?" I asked, struggling to keep the annoyance out of my voice.

"I need you to go to a friend of mine's and give her this." She held up a sealed envelope.

"Why can't you do it?" I said, debating whether or not to just go to my room and making her do it herself.

She pursed her lips. "Because I'm sending you. Now go."

"Fine," I mumbled, taking the envelope.

Step-mother scowled. "What have I told you about the mumbling?"

I shrugged. If she was going to treat me coldly, I really hope she expected to be treated the same way. Stepping out the door, the warm weather fanned my face. I didn't usually like winter, but lately I've been patiently waiting for it. This summer was one of the hottest we've ever had here in New York.

I let my mind wander as I walked. I mostly thought about my father. when I was born, my mother handed me off to my father, who was unprepared to take care of a little baby girl. He tried to get my mom to take me back, but Athena wouldn't do it. "Too risky too my business," she'd said. When I was five, he married my step-mother. She never liked me because I was another woman's child . . . or maybe just because I was Athena's child. She hated my mother especially, and I didn't know why. Maybe because Athena was a successful business woman.

"Annabeth?" a voice said, interrupting me from my thoughts.

I turned, and felt a huge smile forming on my face. "Luke!"

Luke Castellan was a close friend of mine. He's twenty-one, a junior in college. A couple years ago, when I was seven, I ran away from home. Luke found me, and took me back home with the promise that he'd always be there for me if I needed him. He was one of my best and closest friends.

He had blonde hair, blue eyes, and a scar running down one side of his face from an accident he'd had a couple of years ago.

He hugged me, and I felt my face grow warm. "How've you been, short stuff?"

I rolled my eyes and pushed lightly at his chest. "Hey, no mocking my height. But I'm good. How are you?"

"Okay." His smile faltered. "I have to leave town for a little while."

"Oh?" I frowned. "Why?"

"Just personal reasons." His smile came back, but I thought it looked a tad bit forced. "I'll come back soon to visit you."

"Promise?"

"Promise." He wrapped his arms around me, letting his cheek rest on top of my head. "Promise me something else, Annabeth. No matter what happens, you'll never think too bad of me."

I pulled away again. "Why, did you do something wrong?"

"No, I just need to get away for a while."

"Okay," I said softly, though I was still a little suspicious. "Just be safe."

"I will."

I reached up to kiss his cheek. "Call me when you get to wherever you're going."

"Alright," he said. "Good-bye, Annabeth."

"Bye." As I watched him walk away, I wondered when I'll see him again.

I headed to the address that was on the envelope. I wondered what was so important that my step-mother had to send me halfway across town.

I got to the door, knocked three times and waited. When the door finally opened, a woman was standing in front of me. She had gray-brown hair, tired eyes, but a kind smile.

"May I help you?" she asked.

"Uh, yes, I came here to deliver this." I handed her the envelope.

She opened it, smiling as she read. "Ah, thank you. I've been waiting for this. What's your name, sweetheart?"

"Annabeth," I told her.

"Would you like to come in for some cookies, Annabeth?" she asked. "I make pretty good cookies, according to my son."

"Sure."

"Oh, forgive me," she said, smiling shyly. "I'm so distracted I didn't introduce myself. I'm Sally. Sally Jackson."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Percy)

When I woke from my seriously needed nap, I still felt sleepy and groggy. Groaning, I made myself roll out of bed, but I guess I forgot to land on my feet because I fell face first onto my floor.

"Ow," I muttered. Picking myself up, I left my room and started for the stairs. I'd just reached the bottom when I heard voices.

"-He's going to wake and hear us," a girl's voice said. It must have been Thalia.

"No he won't, you know how heavy Percy sleeps when he's out," said a voice that must've belonged to Nico.

"Well, can we please get back to business," another voice asked, and with a jolt I realized it was my dad. He must have come here to talk with us about something with the Big Three's business. I was about to make my presence known when Poseidon's next sentence stopped me in my tracks.

"We may have a lead to who killed Miss Dare."

"What?" I heard Thalia gasp.

"Who?" Nico added.

"It's too soon to tell," Poseidon said. "But we're going to be keeping a close eye on him."

"Who is it?" Thalia demanded.

"Thalia, this is a private investigation. I can't just give out information-"

"Then why are you a part of it?" said Nico.

There was a pause. "Because of my own reasons. Now-"

"Who is it?" Thalia asked again. "We won't be investigating anyone or anything, we just need to know. Percy's gone two years without knowing who killed Rachel. He needs closure."

I froze. It felt like my hands were glued to the railing of the staircase.

Then my dad started speaking again. "And like I already told you, it's just a lead."

"Does it matter?" I can imagine Nico and Thalia scowling at my dad, and I smiled despite my nervousness.

"Alright," my dad finally said. "But Percy can't know, no one can."

"We won't tell Percy or anyone else," Nico promised.

"Well . . ." my dad sighed. "His name is Luke Castellan."


	7. Chapter 6: Girl Talk

*Chapter 6: Girl Talk*

(Annabeth)

I stood frozen in the living room of Sally Jackson's apartment. "Y-You're Percy's mother?" I know I must have stuttered, but meeting Percy's mother caught me off guard. She was so kind, inviting me into the house for cookies just for delivering a message for my step-mother. Now, I could definitely a resemblance. Percy had her kind smile.

"Yes," she said, setting a plate of cookies down on the coffee table, along with two glasses of milk. "You know my son?"

"Uh, we go to school together," I said, a little distracted about biting into a cookie that was blue. Still, they smelled wonderful, so I took one. It was soft and gooey.

"Oh yes, Percy's father and I talked about him, Thalia, and Nico going to school." She smiled again. "I love them, Nico and Thalia too. They're like my own."

Parts of the cookie got stuck in my throat. I washed it down with milk before speaking. "So, um, how do you know my step-mother?"

"Oh, she sometimes helps me edit my writing." She grabbed a book off the side table and handed it to me.

"You're an author?" I asked. Wow. A business man for a father and an author for a mother. I wondered if Percy hated the attention. "I'll have to get this and read it. There's a library near by-"

"Keep it," Sally said kindly. "I have plenty of copies, after all."

"Are you sure?" I asked uncertainly.

"Positive." I was beginning to really like Sally. Suddenly I wasn't so tired anymore. I wanted to stay and talk with this gentle hearted woman. So I did.

A few hours later, I didn't realize how much time had passed until the clock on the wall struck seven. By the time I finally left - Percy's step-father Paul was at the school working late, so I didn't get to meet him - my head was buzzing from all the conversations we'd had, and I was comfortably warm and sleepy from the cookies and milk. Sally told me to come back to visit her soon, and I made a mental note to visit her again sometime . . . maybe with Percy, too.

By the time I got home, my brothers and dad were home. His car was in the garage, and the boys were in the living room watching TV before dinner.

"Hey, squirts," I said as I passed them.

"Hey, Annabeth," they said absently. Once they were distracted by the TV nothing would faze them. I really didn't feel like explaining to my dad and step-mother why I was late coming home, so I went upstairs, grabbed my pajamas and took a shower. When I was done I towel dried my hair. Going back downstairs, I saw that the TV was off and everyone was at the table waiting for me.

Bobby and Matthew, of course, were playing with their food. Dad had his work at the table, and was studying the blue prints for a project he was working on. Step-mother was glaring at me, for being late, no doubt. I sighed and sat down. Just a normal family dinner.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Percy)

"Okay cupcakes, these are swimming tryouts, not football tryouts. So play nice. Take your positions." Coach Hedge blew his whistle, which I seriously thought was unnecessary since I was standing right by him. For such a short, beefy little man Coach Hedge was awfully grumpy. Or maybe that was just his way of showing tough love.

I crouched at the lip of the pool, hands poised beside my feet. Next to me, Jason and a couple other guys did the same.

"Good luck, man," Jason said.

"You too," I told him. The whistle sounded. I wasted no time, and dove into the water. This was almost too easy for me. I've been in water my whole life. Before I knew it, I'd finished my first lap. When I reached the end of the pool I kicked off the wall to give me the push I needed. Pretty soon I'd finished this lap, too. And then it was over. I climbed out of the pool. I heard cheering and looked over at the bleachers where Thalia, Nico, and Annabeth were sitting, cheering for me. I saw Piper too, cheering for Jason.

Then Jason and the other guys climbed out, and Coach Hedge sounded the whistle.

"Great job, Jackson!" he boomed. "Haven't seen a swimmer like that since Will Solace. Graduated two years ago, and a shame. Kid won us every race. You're going to get us to the finals this year, Captain."

I just stared at him, stunned, while Jason clapped me on the back. "Congrats, bro! Captain!"

The other guys, who's names I was pretty sure were Freddy, Michael, Jared, Alex, and Adrian, came over and congratulated me, too.

Then Thalia, Nico, Annabeth and Piper came over. Thalia hugged me, then Annabeth hugged me, much to my embarrassment. Nico smiled and patted my shoulder. Piper congratulated me, then kissed Jason. All in all, it was a good day.

Well, almost. I was waiting for Thalia and Nico to tell me about what my dad told them, but so far they've kept it to themselves. It kind of stung a little, since we always told each other everything. But I knew they thought keeping it from me was protecting me. I just wish I knew who or where Luke Castellan was . . .

"Are you going to come, Percy?"

"Huh?" I asked, dragging myself back to the conversation.

"Hello, earth to swim team captain," Nico joked. "There's an ice cream shop near by, we're going."

"Okay." Together, we walked out to the parking lot. We asked the other guys if they wanted to come, but they were going out with some other friends, so it was just me, Nico, Thalia, Annabeth, Piper, and Jason.

The girls rode in Annabeth's car while Jason and Nico rode with me in the Porshe, since I still haven't gotten my car back yet.

We had the music up loud and the top down - convertible Porshe - as we drove, and a part of my mind that wasn't fixed on Luke wondered what the girls were doing. I seemed to be thinking of him a lot lately, and what I would do if I ever met him.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

"Sooo . . ." Thalia turned the radio down. "Annabeth . . ."

"Oh boy," I sighed. "Why do I have a bad feeling about where this conversation is going?"

"I'll keep it easygoing, promise," she joked. "But, is there anyone you like?"

I blinked. "Wow. Um, well, no, not really."

"No one? At all?" She looked at me with a serious expression.

I pursed my lips. Why did I have the strangest feeling she was trying to coax me into admitting I liked Percy, when I barely knew the guy. "No one."

Thalia gave up and turned the radio back up. From the backseat Piper joked, "Well, that was awkward."

We pulled into the parking lot of the ice cream parlor and waited for the guys. When they pulled in next to us, we walked into the store. It wasn't very crowded. An old couple was sitting near the window sharing an ice cream sunday, and the cashier was behind the counter unconsciously twirling a finger in her hair. When she saw us, she straightened.

"Hello," she said brightly. "How may I help you today?"

"Hi," I told her. "Um, I'd like a chocolate cone, please."

The girl, who's name tag read Melissa, nodded. "And what about the rest of you?"

"Vanilla." This was Nico.

"Chocolate Sunday," said Jason.

"Strawberry." Piper smiled.

"Vanilla," Thalia said.

"Blue raspberry." Percy, of course.

"Alright, I'll bring them to you," Melissa said. After paying we went to sit at a booth near the window. While we waited, Thalia struck up a conversation.

"So, are you guys going to Drew's party this weekend?"

"Nope," I said, shaking my head. "Are you guys?"

"Yeah." Thalia nodded, then smiled mischievously. "And she said we could bring friends."

"I don't want to go," Piper protested. "She hates us and we hate her."

"It'll be fun," Nico joined in. He nudged Percy in the ribs. "Right Percy?"

"Huh?" Percy blinked, as if coming out of a deep thought. I wondered if that was how I always looked, with that dreamy, vacant expression.

"Drew's party. It'll be fun, right?"

"Oh." Percy straightened a bit. "Yeah. Fun." He went back to staring out the window. I glanced at him, wondering why his mood suddenly changed so abruptly.

"Here you go, guys," said Melissa, placing a tray on the table. The conversation was lost as we dug into our ice cream.

"Ah," Jason groaned. "Brain freeze. I ate mine too quickly."

"Smart," Thalia snickered. "Put your thumb on the roof of your mouth, it should help."

Jason did, and after a few seconds sighed with relief. "Thank goodness."

"Can I get you guys anything else?" Melissa asked, returning.

"No thanks," Nico said, smiling at her.

"Uh-" Melissa blushed and then swallowed. "Okay then." She turned and walked away.

"Well, someone was flirting," Piper joked.

Nico jumped. I didn't miss the fact that he'd been staring after Melissa's retreating figure. "W-What? No I wasn't! I was just being nice!"

The rest of us just ate our ice cream and didn't say anything. I noticed Thalia and Percy grinning at each other, and I felt bad for Nico since he was living with them.

When I finally got home, I went to my room and kicked off my shoes, putting my keys on the dresser and throwing my bookbag on the ground without looking at it. I collapsed into bed and quickly fell into peaceful sleep. What a day.


	8. Chapter 7: The Party

***Characters will sometimes be out of character (OOC).***

*Chapter 7: The Party*

(Percy)

I banged on the bathroom door. "Thalia, quit hogging the bathroom! You've been in there for an hour!"

"Go to the other one!" she yelled back.

"I can't, Nico's in there." I continued to bang on the door.

The door cracked open, and Thalia poked her head out. "Well, that's your problem then, Seaweed Brain."

"Don't call me that!" I protested.

She smirked. "Right. I forgot, only Annabeth can call you that, right?"

I didn't mean to, but I blushed. "No!"

She snickered. "Right. Okay then." Then she slammed the door shut. "Oh," she added, "and if you want to use the bathroom maybe you and Nico shouldn't have wasted two hours playing video games."

I rolled my eyes and went back to my room. I swear girls - or mainly Thalia - were impossible to live with. After Nico was finally done getting ready I took a quick shower and dressed in a blue button-down shirt, jeans, and sneakers. Nico was wearing a button-down shirt too, but black, with black jeans.

Both his and my jaws dropped when Thalia finally came out of the bathroom.

She was wearing an over-the-shoulder black shirt with _'Green Day' _written in cursive over the front, black skinny jeans, and black heels. Her spiky hair was styled, and she wore dark eyeshadow with her usual eye-liner.

"You can't wear that!" Nico and I said at the same time.

Thalia raised an eyebrow. "And why not?"

"It's too revealing," I protested.

"There will be drunk teenage boys there," Nico added.

Thalia crossed her arms. "I can wear whatever I want, so lets go." She stormed out of the house.

Nico and I looked at each other. He shrugged. "We can't stop her," he sighed. We grabbed our jackets and followed Thalia out the door.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Percy)

"Woah," Nico said as we pulled in. Drew's house was huge, and already full of people drinking and partying. There were some in the trees, and even on the roof, and almost all had a beer in hand.

"How the Hades did they even get up there?" Thalia wondered as we parked and got out.

"I dunno, flew maybe?" Nico looked around. "Hey, are Annabeth and the others coming?" he asked me.

I looked at my watch. "They should be. Annabeth said they would meet us here."

As soon as I said that, two cars pulled in beside ours. Annabeth got out first, and I couldn't help but stare. Her curly blonde hair was pulled into a pony tail, and she had on a gray blouse, jeans, and heels.

Silena, Piper, Hazel, Leo, Frank, Jason, Katie, Beckendorf, Clarisse, the Stolls and a guy I didn't know who had his arm around Clarisse followed behind Annabeth as they walked toward us.

"Hey, you guys made it!" said Thalia, hugging Annabeth.

"Sure." Annabeth smiled. "Took a little convincing though. Oh, and this is Clarisse's boyfriend and soon-to-be fiance Chris."

"Ha-ha, very funny," Chris said. "Nice to meet you guys."

"Okay, lets go inside. I want to make this night as fun for me and as terrible for Drew as possible!" Silena grabbed Beckendorf's hand and marched toward the house. Somehow, I found myself beside Annabeth.

"Thanks for inviting us," she told me. "I'm sure the Stolls will try to make this night as crazy as possible."

"Oh you can count on it." Travis threw an arm around Katie's shoulders. "We've got enough stuff in here to last a while." He gestured to the bulking backpack on his shoulders.

"Hopefully for the whole night," Connor added.

"Are we even planning on sleeping tonight?" said Thalia.

"I don't see a reason not to," I said. Connor and Travis grinned at me in agreement. "And besides, imagine our dads' faces if they saw us."

"Can we record it then?" Nico asked. "Seeing them freak out would be totally worth it."

"No," I told Nico. "Our dads would pull us out of high school."

"All of you people are becoming bad influences on us already," Thalia joked.

"Aw, thank you!" they chorused.

I looked around and realized two people were missing. "Hey, where are Grover and Juniper?"

"Partying isn't their style," said Annabeth. "They're probably at the animal shelter, they sometimes go there to volunteer. You know, feeding them, walking them, that kind of stuff."

"What are they doing here?" a voice screeched. Drew was walking to us, looking like a very angry doll. Her ringlets bounced as she walked, and her already pink cheeks turned even pinker.

"Oops, I forgot to tell her," Thalia muttered. Silena snickered and high-fived her.

"They're here because we invited them," I told her. "You said we could invite people."

"Yeah, but I didn't mean _them!" _Drew sputtered. "Get off my property you losers!"

"If they leave, we leave." Thalia crossed her arms, and Nico and I did the same.

Drew silently fumed. She knew that if she made Thalia, Nico and I leave it would make her look bad. "Fine," she huffed angrily. "Just don't mess anything up, and stay away from me." She turned on her heels and walked back into the house.

Annabeth grabbed my arm. "Percy, we don't have to be here. We can go do something else."

"Nah, she's fine. She'll probably be too drunk soon to remember that you guys are here anyway." I took her hand and pulled her into the house.

Woah. The place somehow looked even bigger on the inside. A huge chandelier hung from the ceiling. The house was filled with artwork, vases, and all kinds of expensive stuff.

"So what should we do first?" Silena asked.

"How about dance?" Beckendorf took her hand and led her to the living room where people were dancing.

"Hey, Percy, Jason!" a guy called. It was Adrian. He pushed through the crowd, two drinks in each hand.

"Hey Adrian," I greeted. He handed Jason and me the drinks.

"Glad you guys could make it," he said. "Have fun, enjoy the night!" Laughing, he walked away, wobbling a little. I could tell he was already drunk.

Shrugging, I sipped my drink. It was definitely alcohol, maybe vodka.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Percy)

I don't know how much time passed. I didn't even care. I couldn't check my watch; I'd lost it some time ago, and the events of the night were blurry. I vaguely remember dancing with some dark haired chick who'd looked like she was ready to punch Jason for some reason. I think her name was Reyna.

I did remember, through my drunk-filled haze, the Stolls setting up fireworks in the backyard and setting a tree on fire. It took forever to put it out with a water hose.

"Let's go," I told Annabeth, finding her sitting on the couch with some guy. Taking her wrist, I pulled her to her feet and making her spill her drink all over the guy next to her.

"What the hell?" he yelled, jumping to his feet, but I ignored him and pulled Annabeth along.

"Where are we going?" she asked as we stumbled forward. She obviously wasn't as drunk as I was but she was pretty wasted.

"I don't know, Canada?" I laughed. I held up our intwined hands. "We're going to Canada!"

Annabeth laughed too. "How are we gonna get there, Seaweed Brain?"

"We fly, of course!" I grinned. By now I had no idea where we were. I think somewhere in the woods behind Drew's house.

I collapsed in front of a tree, tugging Annabeth down with me. In my other hand I held a bottle. Annabeth sat on my lap as we took turns sipping from the bottle.

"Wanna play a game?" she asked, giggling. She was definitely drunk; a sober Annabeth wouldn't giggle.

"No, I wanna dance!" I suddenly said out of nowhere. I scrambled to my feet and held out my hand. "Dance with me, Wise Girl."

"But there's no music!" she said, but got to her feet anyway. Taking her hand and putting the hand still holding the bottle around her waist, we spun around in circles.

"I'm getting dizzy!" Annabeth laughed, pulling me closer. I could smell her lemon-scented shampoo. Her face was just inches from mine.

After that . . . I sort of blacked out and didn't remember anything.


	9. Chapter 8: The Hangover

***Sorry for the late update. School should be a good enough excuse, eh? :/ This chapter's more just of a recap of the party.* **

*Chapter 8: The Hangover*

(Percy)

When I woke, my head was pounding. I looked around. The room was familiar . . . and I realized it was mine. I started to get up when movement made me freeze.

How the heck did Annabeth and I end up in my room? In bed? Together?

Please let us be dressed, please let us be dressed, I pleaded. I lifted the covers . . . and sighed in relief. We were both fully dressed, even in our shoes. The worst that probably happened was that we kissed.

She stirred, and then opened her eyes. It took her exactly four seconds to take in her surroundings before sitting up. "Where-" she asked.

"My room. I have no idea how we got here," I told her.

Her eyes widened. "Please tell me we didn't . . ."

"We're fully dressed, so I'm guessing no." I held my head in my hands. "But I have a killer headache."

"Ow," Annabeth groaned. "Thanks for bringing it up. I need aspirin."

"Well come on, we might have some downstairs." We got up from bed, and I got a head rush and had to sit back down for a second. "Ahh." My head felt like it was being pounded on by a hammer.

Annabeth followed me down the stairs. She was silent as we walked, and that made me nervous. What was she thinking about?

As we passed the living room, we stopped. There were bodies spread out everywhere. Silena and Beckendorf were sharing the couch, the Stolls were in nothing but their boxers on the floor, Piper and Jason had the other couch, Katie was curled up into Travis's side, Clarisse, Chris, Hazel and Frank were on the floor, and Leo was spread out over the coffee table, his head hanging off the side.

"How the heck did we all wind up here?" said Annabeth. "And where are Nico and Thalia?"

We checked their rooms. Thalia was snoring soundly in hers. Then we went to Nico's room.

"Oh my . . ." Annabeth covered her mouth with her hand.

Nico was sprawled out on his bed. And he wasn't alone. A girl was lying next to him. It was Melissa, the cashier from the ice cream shop.

I shut the door. _Wow, _I mouthed. Annabeth nodded her head in agreement.

In the kitchen, we got some aspirin and shared a bottle of Ginger ale.

"Feel better?" I asked her.

"A little," she admitted. "You?"

"Same. I'm never drinking again, though." My head throbbed in agreement.

Annabeth smiled. "Same." There was a pause.

"So . . ." I cleared my throat. Man, this was awkward. I wish I knew exactly what happened last night.

"Percy," she sighed. "Look, since nothing too bad apparently happened between us, can we just forget it? I mean, the last thing I remember is sitting on the couch with some guy."

I racked my brain. "The last thing I remember is the Stolls setting a tree on fire. I think. It's all really hazy and fuzzy."

"Then it's agreed: whatever happened last night is behind us."

"Agreed." But how could I really agree when I don't even know what happened? Does Annabeth remember something that she's not telling me?

"We should make breakfast," she suddenly said. "Wake everyone up."

I just stared at her. "Uh, I can't cook."

"Then you can be my assistant." She then laughed at the look on my face. "Oh, don't look like that. Get the bacon, eggs, and pancake batter out for me."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

By the time the others had woken up Percy and I were just finishing the sausage and bacon.

They huddled into the kitchen with glassy tired eyes. I saw Melissa standing next to Nico, and Percy and I shared smirks.

"You guys made breakfast?" Thalia asked.

"I made breakfast, Percy helped," I corrected. Percy scoffed.

"Sweet." Nico trudged forward, dragging Melissa by the hand. "Come on, Mel."

"Hey, you got any aspirin?" Connor asked, holding his head.

"And some clothes?" Travis added. "We have no idea what happened to ours."

"On the counter," said Percy. "The aspirin, I mean. You can, uh, borrow some of my clothes."

As the others took the medicine Percy got the plates. We all sat down in the living room with our food and turned on the TV, keeping the volume low since all of us were still hungover. When Travis and Connor returned they were wearing some of Percy's shorts and T-shirts that were a little too small since they were taller than him. But hey, it was better than being practically naked.

"So," said Katie, breaking the silence, "that party wasn't so bad."

"Yeah, it especially got interesting when those two guys had a drinking contest, and one of them threw up all over a poor girl," Nico said.

"When did that happen?" Piper asked, taking a bite of pancake.

"Um . . ." Travis tapped his fork against his lips. "Around three o' clock in the morning, maybe. I think someone got it on video."

Katie suddenly started coughing. "You idiot, that was you and Connor! And the girl was me! I had to change my shirt!"

Travis blinked. "Oh. Crap. Katie, I'm sorry."

"But can you explain why we were practically naked?" said Connor.

Katie sighed and rolled her eyes. "Because you guys bet some dude that you could chug a gallon of beer. If you lost, you had to spend the rest of the party in nothing but your boxers."

"And we _lost?" _Travis shouted, a little too loud.

"Dude," Percy groaned. "Too loud."

"Sorry," Travis apologized. "Forgot. Dang hangovers suck."

After that we ate in silence for a while. Without really realizing it, I leaned into Percy a little, his shoulder pressed against mine. I don't think he noticed, he was too busy rubbing his temples.

When I told Percy about sitting on the couch with some guy being the last thing I remembered . . . I'd sort of stretched the truth a little bit. I just didn't want Percy's and my friendship to be ruined over some stupid drunk mistake, or to make it awkward between us.

While we were dancing and I pulled him closer . . . I'd kissed him. It was short and barely lasted four seconds . . . but we kissed. I was trying to forget, but it was hard. After that we'd finished off the bottle and my memory turned blank.

"So, does anyone know how we got here?" Jason asked.

"We must've drove," Leo muttered. "Oh geez, drunk driving. What were we thinking?"

"We weren't," Piper reminded him.

"I can answer that one," a voice said. Grover appeared, Juniper following close behind.

Grover smiled at all of our somber faces. "You guys look terrible. This is why Juniper and I skip out on the parties. But anyway, yeah Juniper and I had to make several trips to get you guys back here. The first thing Percy and Annabeth did was go to his room and stayed there all night."

Percy's face was red, and I'm guessing mine was too. Eyes and smirks turned our way. Thalia fist-bumped Nico.

"I wouldn't look so smug," Grover told Nico. "You insisted I pick up Melissa, and you guys disappeared in your room all night, too." This time it was Nico's and Mel's turn to blush.

"Percy woke me up when he called," Grover continued, "drunk and asking me to come take him home. So I called Juniper and we drove all of you back here."

"Yeah, you're welcome," Juniper giggled. The morning sun streaming through the window in a shower of gold made her face glowing and brightened, a fact unmissed by Grover, who stared at her. Percy kicked him.

"Ow!" Grover yelped. "I mean, so yeah. All of you guys just pretty much crashed around five in the morning. It's eleven now, you guys slept for six hours."

"No wonder we feel like crap," Jason muttered.

"I think that's the alcohol," Connor pointed out.

"Hey, can you help me in the kitchen?" Thalia asked me suddenly.

"Wow, you're doing the cleaning, Thal?" Percy teased.

Thalia glared at him. "Only because I'm nice, Kelp Head." She then grabbed my wrist and pulled me into the kitchen. I heard Percy and Nico laughing hysterically at the "nice" comment.

When we got to the kitchen Thalia spun around to face me. Apparently she had no intention of doing the cleaning. "Okay, what happened between you and Percy?"

I blinked, keeping a poker face. "What do you mean?"

"Cut the crap, Annabeth. I saw you two in there. Percy was glancing at you like some adoring puppy."

"He was?" Huh. Guess I didn't notice.

"Wow, and I thought Percy was oblivious," she sighed.

"Nothing happened," I told her. "Or, at least nothing Percy needs to know about. And I really don't want to talk about it."

"Okay, okay." She ran a hand through her spiky hair. "It's just . . . I don't want to see Percy end up getting hurt again."

"I know," I said softly. "I wouldn't do that to him."

Thalia smiled. "You know, Chase, you're not half bad."

"Neither are you, Grace," I joked. Arm in arm, we went back to the living room.


	10. Chapter 9: Quality Time

***Sorry for the late update. I'd say school is my excuse, but its also been another story idea hogging my attention. Two, actually. And testing. I've already done three out of eight for this week.***

*Chapter 9: Quality Time*

(Percy)

Two weeks passed since Drew's party. Ever since then, random people around school have been coming up to me and the others and saying things like, _hi, that was a great party, that tree catching on fire was awesome, _etc. It was pretty cool. One guy mentioned a clown, but I'm pretty sure he hallucinated that.

Drew seemed to take it upon herself to latch on to my arm every chance she got, making sure everyone saw us together.

By the third week, rumor had gotten around that we were dating. Which was completely untrue, but Drew, loving the attention, told everyone that we were a couple. she was lucky I didn't hit women. There were times when I simply wanted to deck her.

When I sat down in the shade of the tree outside in the usual spot, everyone was there except Thalia and Nico.

"Well if it isn't Lover Boy," Travis joked. Katie smacked his arm.

"I wish Drew would let that stupid rumor go," I said, scowling. I've had enough of Drew. And not to mention she sometimes wore so much perfume it made me gag whenever I was around her.

"Just tell her you don't want to date her, man," said Jason. "And make sure everyone hears it."

"Right, 'cause that's going to convince her." Silena sighed. "My half-sister never listens to anyone but herself."

I choked on the piece of breadstick I was eating. "Drew is your half-sister?"

"Unfortunately." Silena bit into her apple. "My mom-our mom-left her dad for my dad. Now her dad's all bitter and he and Drew hate me and my dad."

"Oh." I blinked. Drew was a snob and Silena was so nice. I never would have guessed they were related.

"What's up, people?" Thalia asked, sitting down beside me.

"Where's Nico?" I looked around for him but didn't see him anywhere.

Thalia rolled her eyes. "Take a guess. Sitting with Melissa and her group of friends today."

"Ah." Now that Melissa was in the picture I noticed her around the school a lot. She was almost always with another girl who I guessed was her best friend.

"He sure is getting acquainted fast," Thalia joked.

"Maybe a little too acquainted." Nico didn't have a clue when it came to dating. "Maybe you should talk with him," I suggested.

Thalia raised an eyebrow. "You mean a talk? Or 'The Talk?'"

I was pretty sure Nico didn't need 'the talk' and wouldn't want to hear it anyway, especially from me or Thalia. He wasn't _that _young, and he wasn't stupid. "Just talk with him," I said as everyone laughed.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

I was fast asleep when my door swung open and the light turned on. I groaned and buried my face under my pillow to block out the light.

"Annabeth," my father's voice said. "Get up. We need to talk."

"What?" I muttered, sitting up. "I'm really tired, Dad."

"You got home really late tonight," said Dad. "Where were you?"

"I was out with my friends," I told him. "Is that a crime?"

"It is if you get home late." He crossed his arms.

I glared at him. "I'm eighteen! And I got home at ten thirty."

"Doesn't matter. You have curfew." My dad's stern glare didn't even compare to the look that I was probably giving him. My mother always said I had her eyes, including the fire in them that sometimes made people cringe.

"Well I shouldn't!" I was kind of stunned that we were having this conversation . . . and with my _dad. _Usually he left this kind of stuff to my step-mother.

"Where were you?" My dad repeated.

"I was at Percy, Thalia, and Nico's. We lost track of time watching movies, okay?"

Dad's eyes lowered. "Percy? Nico? These boys are friends of yours?"

"Yes." I mirrored him and crossed my arms. "And if you're going to treat me like this I'm not staying here." I got up and grabbed my duffel bag.

"You aren't going anywhere," he said. "And I'm certainly not-"

"You're treating me like a child!" I yelled. "And then you suddenly become my dad because your annoying wife hates me."

He scowled. "Young lady, don't talk about your mother-"

But I cut him off. "She isn't my mother."

His chest puffed out. "Well maybe if you were as well behaved as Bobby and Matthew were-"

"Are you seriously calling me immature?" I shouldered my bag. "Excuse me." Pushing past him I headed for the door, grabbing my car keys.

I thought my dad was going to tell me to stay, to say that he was sorry and that he loved me. No such luck.

"Leave the keys," was all he said, his voice cold.

"Fine." I preferred to walk anyway. It was just like eleven years ago, when I ran away from home. Except this time, there was no Luke to find me and take care of me. I missed him terribly.

I didn't realize where I was headed until Percy's front door was staring me in the face. It was over eleven o' clock at night, and I wondered if I should turn around and leave. But before I could a voice called, "Annabeth?"

I turned. Percy was standing there in swimming trunks holding a towel.

"Uh, hey," I said. "Why are you in swimming trunks?"

Percy jerked his thumb toward the backyard. "I couldn't sleep, so I went swimming for a bit. What are you doing here? Are you okay?"

I shifted weight nervously. "Oh, I'm fine. I was just, uh . . ."

"Running away from home?" he guessed, glancing at my bag.

I looked down at the bag on my shoulder. "Oh, this is just full of Thalia's stuff. I was returning it to her." I mentally face-palmed. Really? That was the best I could come up with? I was Athena's daughter, for Pete's sake.

"Right," he said slowly. "You're returning stuff to Thals at eleven at night."

"Well you're swimming," I pointed out.

"Well played." He stood silent for a moment. "Do you want to talk about it?" he asked softly.

I shook my head. If I talked about it I would start to cry.

"Okay . . ." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Do you want to stay here?"

"Yes, please." I followed him inside. The house was a huge two-story building with a large staircase, huge decor, and huge game room/TV room with a pool table, air hockey table, video games, and a bar filled with all kinds of soda. All in all, pretty much any kid's dream room. In front of the TV sat a really large black leather couch. I wouldn't mind staying there tonight.

I turned to Percy. "So, um, where are the blankets and stuff?"

"Blankets?" Percy blinked, confused. Then understanding came to him. "Annabeth, I am not making you sleep on the couch. Just take my room, I'll take the couch after a quick shower."

"You just want the TV to yourself," I chided.

Percy smiled sheepishly. "Maybe."

"Well, you're just going to have to share then, Seaweed Brain."

He laughed. "Whatever you say, Wise Girl." As he left to take his shower I couldn't help but notice how much we called each other by our new nicknames.

After he was out he grabbed a blanket from the closet and we spread out on opposite ends of the couch and watched TV. Eventually we ended up watching SpongeBob.

"Why are we watching this?" I groaned. "My younger brothers watch this."

He looked at me, offended. "Hey, don't knock SpongeBob." I rolled my eyes at him.

"Okay, okay," he sighed. He changed it. "Better?"

"Yup," I said. Better than SpongeBob . . . but I'd better not tell Percy that. So we spent an hour watching that, and neither of us had fallen asleep.

Percy then looked at me. "Well, what do you want to do now? It's saturday night, and Thals and Nico are asleep. They probably won't wake up either, they are really heavy sleepers." He smiled. "Someone could rob us blind and they wouldn't know until morning."

"Want to watch a scary movie?" I suggested. "I don't think I've seen the movie Seven yet."

"The one with Morgan Freeman in it?" he asked excitedly. "Awesome, I'll make popcorn."

After the popcorn was made we snuggled under the blanket with the popcorn between us. I occasionally glanced at Percy to see if he was scared but he kept a poker face. Well, except once when I jumped at him and said _Boo! _and he nearly jumped out of his skin.

"So not funny."

"Oh, so very funny," I said, laughing hysterically.

"Humph." After that I left him alone, but he'd scowl whenever I'd randomly laugh.

We put the empty popcorn bowl on the floor, and soon after I ended up falling asleep with my head on Percy's chest, his cheek resting on the top of my head, right in the middle of the movie.


	11. Chapter 10: Spying

*Chapter 10: Spying*

(Percy)

As Annabeth and I finally woke, the light made me blink.

"How long did we sleep for?" Annabeth asked in a small voice, yawning.

I looked at the clock on the wall. "I don't know, nine hours maybe?"

She sat up. As she moved away, suddenly the left side of my body where she'd been laying felt cold without her.

We went to the kitchen, where I found a note taped to the refrigerator in Thalia's messy handwriting: _'Went out with Nico, be back later. -Thalia'_

"Well, guess we have the house to ourselves," I said, wondering why Nico and Thalia left without telling me.

Annabeth smiled sheepishly. "Actually, I was going to go with Silena to the mall."

"Oh, okay." So much for spending more time with her.

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. I was so caught up in the gesture I didn't hear what she asked me.

"Well?" she asked.

"What?" I blinked.

"Do you want to come?"

I grimaced. "And do what? Carry your shopping bags?"

She laughed and swatted my arm. "Fine, don't come. Just don't walk around the house in your boxers and socks, either."

"I never did that."

"Oh yeah?" I could tell she was trying not to smile. "So the picture Thalia showed me was fake?"

"What picture?" Thalia . . . picture . . . oh, crap. "I'm going to kill her!"

This time she did smile. "You looked so cute. You even had sunglasses on."

"Who has that picture now?"

Annabeth put a finger to her lips and pretended to think. "Um, me, I think."

I glowered at her. "If you don't burn it I'll-I'll . . ."

"You'll what?" She had won, and she knew it. Grinning, she left to get dressed while I still stood in the kitchen.

After Annabeth left I watched TV, then played video games for a while. When I went to the kitchen to get a soda I noticed another note under the first that I didn't catch before. Taking it off, I recognized Nico's handwriting: _'And by the way, you and Annabeth looked cute together on the couch. Don't believe me? We have pictures. Aka-blackmail. :) -Nico' _

Why that little . . . I crumbled the note in my hand. When that little punk came home he was so dead.

After a while the coffee table was slowly filling with junk food. Thalia and Nico still haven't come back yet.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Percy)

When the doorbell rang I was irritated.

"Couldn't have given me five more minutes," I grumbled. Pausing the game and setting the controller on the couch I got up to answer the door. Drew was standing there wearing a pink miniskirt, white top, and heels, her purse on one shoulder.

"What do you want?" I sighed.

Drew's shell pink lips curved up into a smile. "Well, that's not nice, Percy." Pushing past me and walking into the house, Drew looked at her surroundings. "Nice house, Perce."

"What are you doing here?" I asked, trying to keep the irritation out of my voice.

"I just wanted to drop in and say hi." She looked me over, and I realized I wasn't wearing a shirt. Clearing my throat I grabbed a clean one from the laundry basket full of clean clothes on the table (that I accidentally forgot to fold) and put it on.

"Just drop in?" I crossed my arms. "That's a total lie, Drew."

"Okay, you caught me." She smiled again, and I found myself distracted by her pink eyeliner. "I just wanted to see if you wanted to hang out today, seeing as Thalia and Nico ditched you to go to the mall with the Big Three."

"Wait, the Big Three, Thalia, and Nico are all at the mall?" I tried to imagine the five of them sitting at a table with a big plate of french fries. The thought was so abnormal I pushed it away. Besides, the Big Three would seriously rather be caught dead than seen eating at the mall. "How do you know that?"

Drew waved her hand. "Hon, I have friends already there waiting for me. And it's sunday, and you're sitting at home alone and shirtless." Her eyes raked over me again. "Not that that's really a bad thing . . ."

I rolled my eyes.

"Anyway," she continued, "Just come. You might have fun."

"No thanks," I told her. "I don't want to be seen with you, especially since you keep telling everyone we're together."

"You can spy on them and see why they had a meeting and didn't invite you," she baited. She had a point there. Although I think I already knew. It had something to do with Rachel. It must be important if they were keeping it from me, and I was determined to find out what it is. I'd do whatever it takes to catch the guy that hurt Rachel, even if it meant putting myself in danger.

"Okay, I'm in," I said.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

"Why did I have to pick you up from Thalia, Nico, and Percy's house?" was the first thing Silena said to me after I climbed into her car.

"I'm fine, thank you," I said.

She rolled her eyes. "Come on, Annabeth, I'm serious."

"I slept over," I sighed.

Silena's face softened. "Did you fight with your dad again?"

"Yeah," I said quietly. "But I don't think I'm going to go back this time. They hate me there, and I hate being there. It's not worth it to fight with them almost every day."

"Do you want to stay with me?" she asked. "You know my parents love you, and my little sister, too."

I smiled gratefully. "Thanks, but I don't really know what I'm going to do until I can get my own place. I just can't stay there anymore."

The topic was dropped until we arrived at the mall. Parking, we got out and headed inside. There were kids running around either covered in chocolate or ice cream while the parents attempted to wipe it off. People lounged in the food court area and teens loitered, hanging out and talking with friends.

Silena decided to start conversation. "So, do you think Juniper and Grover will get together soon?" she asked as we walked.

"I hope so, they've had a crush on each other forever," I said. Everyone knew that-except them. We really needed to fix that soon.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

We browsed around and tried on clothes for a while, but I quit when Silena tried to get me into a top that was way too revealing for me and went to look at jewelry instead.

I jumped when Silena snuck up behind me. "So, Annabeth," she said casually. I could tell she's been wanting to ask me something since I got into her car. I just hoped it wouldn't be embarrassing. I wasn't so lucky.

"Who let you in last night?" She picked up a purple tee and examined it.

Might as well get this over with. "Percy," I sighed. "He let me stay."

"Oh?"

"It's not a big deal," I told her. I could feel my face getting hot. "We just-"

"Wait!" Silena grabbed my arm. "Is that Percy there . . . with _Drew?" _

"What?" She turned me around. At first I didn't see them. Then I noticed Percy and Drew standing near the food court area. It looked like Percy was spying on someone, but I couldn't see who since the giant fountain was in the way.

"What is he doing here with her?" Silena exclaimed.

"I have no idea, but he must have a good reason." Suddenly Percy disappeared behind the fountain. From what I could see he was waving his arms and yelling, causing people to turn and stare. Drew just stood there with her arms crossed, smirking.

Silena cursed. "I bet she just wanted to cause trouble."

"Well if that was her plan, she was successful." As I watched, Percy stormed off. Then, to my surprise, Nico and Thalia were following him, calling his name, but Percy was too quick. He disappeared in the crowd of people, leaving Nico and Thalia standing there dejected.

I hoped Percy was okay. I wanted to go after him, but I had a feeling he wanted to be left alone. So I watched as Nico and Thalia left. Then Poseidon, Hades, and Nico left. Drew just sat down at a nearby table with her group of friends, as though nothing had happened.


	12. Chapter 11: Confrontations and Truces

***In this story Luke is two years older than Percy.***

*Chapter 11: Confrontations and Truces*

(Percy)

After Drew and I got to the mall, me insisting I take my car since I didn't want to be stuck with her in hers, we scavenged around the mall until we saw them.

"There," Drew whispered, grabbing my arm and pointing. Thalia, Nico, and our fathers were sitting at a table farthest from the crowd of people, leaning in close so as to not be overheard. Why they would choose the mall was beyond me.

As Drew stood nearby I hid behind the fountain. Inside I could see pennies, quarters, dimes, and nickels.

". . . .Gonna find out we're sneaking behind his back," Nico said in a hushed tone.

"Well he certainly can't know right now," my father said sternly. "He's in danger."

"Danger? What kind of danger?" Thalia demanded.

"We think the person who killed Miss Dare is after Percy."

"What makes you think that?"

"Correction, why didn't you think of that two years ago?" Nico added.

"Because. Here, take a look." I saw Zeus slide a worn out piece of paper toward Nico and Thalia. They took turns reading it and gasped.

"Someone is threatening Percy?"

"What about this Luke guy?" asked Nico. "Have you got him yet?"

"No," Hades answered. "We think he may have left New York."

"Well that's just great," Thalia grumbled.

"We also think someone threatening Percy is a way of threatening us," Zeus stated. "We believe someone may be trying to take over our business-"

Of course they would try to turn this into something about them. Anger clouded my vision, the noise of the mall becoming a buzzing in my ears. Without realizing it, I'd jumped from behind the fountain.

Nico and Thalia jumped, not expecting to see me. I didn't care. I was mad at them, too. "Rachel was murdered and all you can think about is your business?" I growled. "You're selfish-all three of you."

"Perseus watch your tone," Dad warned. I knew I was in trouble when he used my real name, but right now I didn't care.

"You make me so sick sometimes." This was directed at the Big Three, not Nico and Thalia, but I still saw them wince.

"Percy-" Thalia started, but before she could finish I walked away.

"Percy!" I heard Thalia and Nico calling my name, but I didn't turn. I got into my car and drove home carefully. If I let my anger affect my driving I could crash and kill myself.

After I got home I slammed the door shut and put the keys on the counter. I knew Thalia and Nico would be trying to get home as quickly as possible to confront me, and I wasn't quite ready to see them yet. Going upstairs, I went to my room and sat on my bed. What was the point of going anyway? All it did was make me angry.

I sighed and flopped down on my back, staring at the ceiling. I was deep in thought when the doorbell rang. I just laid there, deciding that whoever it was could either call or come back later.

When the doorbell rang for the fifth time I got up. After I went downstairs I opened the door to find a guy who looked a bit older than me standing there.

"Are you Percy?" he asked.

"Who wants to know?" Just because I was angry doesn't mean I was stupid. If someone really was after me I was going to be careful who I let know who I was.

"I really need to talk to you," he began, then took a deep breath. "Don't hit me, but . . . I'm Luke. Luke Castellan."

I hit him.

Before I knew it my fist had connected with his jaw. His head snapped back, and he grabbed the doorframe to keep from falling backwards.

"I said _don't _hit me, man!" he groaned. "Please, let me explain-"

"Oh, you're going to explain alright." I grabbed the front of his jacket and hurled him into the house. "You're going to tell me if you hurt Rachel, then I'm going to call the police and put your sorry butt in jail."

"I didn't hurt Rachel!" Luke said, cradling a hand to his jaw. "I would never hurt her. She was my friend. That's why I came here."

"Start talking," I growled. "I'm in no mood for games."

"Okay, okay." Luke sat on the couch. "I know I owe you an explaination. I'm just here to clear my name and let you know that I'm innocent . . . sort of. That night, I was with a couple of friends. We got drunk. I drove home and passed out. When I woke the next morning I found out Rachel had been-" He choked and didn't finish the sentence. "I knew the cops would blame me since I was the last one to see her alive."

"No, I was the last to see her alive." I crossed my arms.

"No." He shook his head. "You weren't. I knew you guys were planning to meet at Montauk." It felt like a cold knife was twisting in my stomach.

"I ran into her just as she was leaving her house," he continued. "Drunk. It was before I got home. She told me she was meeting up with you, and why." His piercing blue eyes gazed at me, and I felt my face growing hot. Rachel told him? Something that was only supposed to be between her and me? Suddenly I felt betrayed.

"We were close friends growing up," Luke said quietly. "We'd lost touch for a couple of years. But anyway, after that, she left, and then I left, not realizing that would be the last time I talked to her." Luke shut his eyes, his expression growing sad. "And the worse thing is, I never got to say good-bye."

As bad as I felt for the guy, if he really was telling the truth or not, I wasn't feeling quite _that_ sympathetic. "You poor thing."

He could hear the sarcasm in my voice. "Percy, I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I know you didn't get to say good-bye either."

"Why should I believe you?" I asked him.

"Because you have to believe I want to find out who did this to Rachel, too," he said. "I swear I would never hurt her. The only reason I'm a suspect is because I don't have a strong alibi, and they know it. They automatically try to pin the murder on me, especially if they find out I'd been drinking."

"Why didn't you tell the cops the truth two years ago?" I asked, though I already knew.

"Man, I would have been busted for underage drinking and DUI. I'm twenty now. Please, Percy. Believe me. Please. Rachel was like a younger sister to me, just like Annabeth."

I felt a tingle go up my spine. "You know Annabeth?"

He looked at me, puzzled. "You know Annabeth? Annabeth Chase?"

"We go to school together," I explained.

"Oh." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, um . . ."

I made the decision to trust him. Even if he turned out to be a traitor, what was that saying? Keep your friends close and your enemies closer? Only time would tell if Luke was my enemy or not. And he had to be okay if Annabeth trusted him.

I held out my hand. "Truce?"

He took my hand, relieved. "Truce. And thank you for believing me." He looked at his watch. "I should go."

"Don't mention it," I said. "And see you around."

"See you." He walked to the door, then paused. "You know, if we did a little digging, we could probably find out who killed her."

I nodded. "We'll see."

Luke opened the door and walked out. I heard his car leave the driveway, then he was gone. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. A dozen things, a bunch of memories, were rushing into my head at once, threatening to make my brain explode. The fact that I had some anger still lingering didn't help.

I needed to get away. From everything. But I didn't want to be alone. There was one person I needed most, surprisingly since I'd always wanted only Nico and Thalia at my side.

My hand was shaky as I dialed. It rang and rang, until I thought for sure she wouldn't pick up.

"Hello?" she finally answered.

"Annabeth?" My voice cracked. I swallowed. "How soon can Silena drop you off at my house?"


	13. Chapter 12: Montauk

***So sorry this took so long. I've been working. Just a reminder: I don't do lemons. The only way I would reconsider is if the couples are married or if enough people want me to.**

**Inspiration for this chapter: 'I Can't Help Falling in Love With You' by Elvis Presley***

*Chapter 12: Montauk*

(Annabeth)

I glanced at Percy, worried. After he'd called I asked Silena to drop me off at his house. Percy hadn't explained much, just that he wanted to leave for a bit to clear his head, and that he wanted me to go with him.

I watched him while he drove. His body was relaxed, but his hands were gripping the steering wheel.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

His stormy green eyes flickered to me, then back to the road. A smile curved on his lips. "You'll see, Wise Girl."

"Is it far?"

"No," he said. "But there's something I need to get off my chest."

"Oh?" But I didn't push him. He'd tell me when he was ready. To distract him we played I Spy for the rest of this ride.

"We're here," he finally said, parking. We were sitting in front of a small cabin. The windows were covered with cobwebs, and the ocean could be heard ways behind the cabin. The view was breathtaking. Percy looked so peaceful and relaxed I knew this place meant a lot to him.

"What is this place?" I asked, nervously eyeing the cobwebs. If there were webs, there were spiders. And I detested spiders.

Percy took a deep breath. "Montauk." He helped me out of the car. "I sometimes came here to clear my head and get away, you know?"

I did know. I knew exactly how he felt. "Came?" I looked at him.

He avoided my eyes. "I stopped coming to Montauk after Rachel died."

"Oh."

His smile returned. "Come on, I'll show you around."

I knew exactly what I might be getting myself into. A night. Alone. With Percy.

_Don't think like that, _I scolded myself. I swallowed. "Coming."

We walked down to the beach, where I buried my toes in the sand and the wind breezing through my hair.

"Like it?" Percy asked.

"I love it," I breathed. "It's so pretty here." And the view of the ocean was amazing.

"Rachel thought so too." He took a deep breath. Whatever he wanted to get off his chest, he was about to say. "That night, Rachel and I were going to meet up here."

"Here at Montauk?"

He nodded. "Yeah." He shoved his hands in his pockets and wouldn't look at me. "We were going to . . . I mean it was . . ." He exhaled. "It would have been our first."

"Your first . . ." I said, not catching on at first. Then I caught his expression: he was embarrassed. "Oh," I squeaked, my face going hot.

"Yeah," he swallowed. "That's why I didn't come back. I didn't think I could face it."

"Then why did you?" I asked softly. "Why now?"

He finally looked at me. "Because I realized it wouldn't hurt anymore. She's gone, and I guess I've accepted that."

"But you haven't given up on her," I said quietly.

"How can I?" He tilted his face up, his eyes closed. "Rachel's murderer is still out there. The least I can do for her is catch the son of a-" He choked back the last word.

He looked at me again, his face relaxing. "But I didn't bring you here to mope. Why don't we have some fun?"

"What kind of fun?" I asked suspiciously.

"This kind." He lifted me over his shoulder and sprinted into the water.

"Percy!" I pounded his back. "Don't you even-aah!" We both fell into the water. It was cold; I felt goosebumps creep along my skin.

When I finally surfaced, my teeth were chattering and Percy was grinning at me.

I splashed him. "S-so not f-funny!"

He rolled his eyes. "Don't you know how to have fun?"

I scowled at him. "Of course I do-"

"I don't mean willingly going to the library, Wise Girl."

He wanted fun. Fine, I could do fun. Grinning, I ducked underwater, completely forgetting that we were both fully clothed. I reached out blindly until my hands caught Percy's ankles, then I yanked him underwater.

When he surfaced, he rubbed his eyes and glared. "Oh, you are so asking for it." Then he tackled my waist and we toppled into the water.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Percy)

After the sun started going down we finally got out of the water. Annabeth's lips were turning blue, and I'm pretty sure mine were, too.

We changed clothes and sat comfortably in front of the fire with a large bag of marshmallows.

"Thalia and Nico are probably going to give you hell tomorrow, you know," said Annabeth teasingly. "Do they even know you're here?"

"They'll forgive me," I sighed. "They always do. They know whenever I run off and leave my cellphone behind that I come here."

"Is this where you come - came - to be alone?" she asked.

I put another marshmallow on my stick and stuck it in the fire. The stars were out, since there wasn't much light around here, and they twinkled in the sky. "Yeah, but I didn't want to be alone this time. I'm sorry if I sort of kidnapped you," I said sheepishly, feeling guilty.

"Don't be, my dad and step-mother won't miss me," she said quietly. She perked up. "And besides, this is really cool. I can see why you love it here."

I smiled at her, grateful. I was glad now that I brought her. The confrontations with the Big Three and Luke seem like they happened months ago. "Thanks, Annabeth."

She bumped my shoulder. "Hey, what are friends for?" Something in the air changed, because suddenly I became consciously aware of how close she was sitting and how little space there was between us. The firelight lit up her features, her gray storm-colored eyes, her mouth, her hair.

When I realized I was leaning toward her I stopped, about to lean back and apologize when she turned to face me, putting her face closer than before. We stared at each other.

"We can't . . ." she murmured.

"I know . . ."

"Percy . . ."

But we did. She kissed me, and suddenly I didn't have control of my body anymore. My mind went blank. On their own my arms went around her, one around her waist and the other buried in her hair. It wouldn't be until later that I realized how her tiny body fit into mine, or how her shampoo was lemon-scented. One of her hands was on the side of my face, the other around my neck.

Then we both tensed. We pulled away, and my face felt hot. I swallowed. "Sorry."

"It's okay," she said weakly. We both decided to go to bed early, though it was probably just to get away from me. I mentally kicked myself. How could I be so stupid?

It wasn't until I was lying in bed, though, unable to sleep, that I realized that she'd kissed me back.


	14. Chapter 13: Arrested

***Warning: Chapter will contain mentions of sex abuse and slight language.* **

*Chapter 13: Arrested*

(Percy)

The car ride back was nothing but silent.

Annabeth and I barely spoke since we got up this morning. If I was being honest with myself, I'd say we were skirting around each other, trying to avoid each other as much as possible.

Although that was impossible in a car, with so little space between us. The air was thick and awkward, and it didn't help that I couldn't stop glancing at her. She was avoiding looking at me by staring out the window. I groaned and slouched in my seat.

When I had to stop for gas, I was about to ask her if she wanted a snack or something, but when I turned she was already getting out of the car, wallet in hand. When she came back with two waters she silently handed me one. I muttered a word of thanks, but she didn't respond and got back in the car.

Thankfully we finally made it back to the house. I'd taken my car, not the Porsche, and it sat in the driveway. I knew I would have to face my cousins sooner or later, and now that I wasn't angry anymore now would be as good of a time as any.

As soon as Annabeth and I walked into the house Thalia and Nico walked out of the kitchen, their emotions flickering across their faces: anxiousness, nervousness, guilt, and lastly happy to see me back.

Thalia hugged me tightly, and Nico just gave me a one-armed guy hug.

"I think I'll just, um, shower," said Annabeth awkwardly.

Thalia jerked her thumb in the direction of the hallway. "Bathroom is second door to the left."

"Thanks." After she left - still not saying a word to me - Nico turned to me, raising an eyebrow.

"What was that about?" he asked.

"What?" I said innocently.

But Nico was persistant. "You guys act like you can't stand being in the same room together. Did something happen?"

I kept a poker face. "Nothing important." Nico looked like he wanted to keep up the questioning but thankfully let the subject drop.

"Percy," Thalia started. "I - we - are so sorry for-"

"Don't be," I told her. "Just don't keep it from me anymore, okay?"

"We won't, promise," Nico said, looking relieved.

"So how mad are the Big Three at me?" I prayed my dad was understanding and wouldn't disown me or something.

"Beyond pissed," Thalia admitted. "You humiliated them in front of everyone, even though they deserved it."

"Great," I groaned. That was one conversation I won't be looking forward to.

Ten minutes later Annabeth came back. Her hair was dripping wet, and she had on a fresh pair of shorts and a T-shirt.

She avoided me - of course - and turned to Thalia. "So it's okay?"

"What's okay?" Nico and I asked at the same time.

"Annabeth," Thalia announced, "will be staying with us a while until she can get an apartment of her own."

"Cool," Nico said.

"Great," I muttered. Now not only will she be living with me but I have no way to avoid her except for school.

"So where-" Annabeth started, but she was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"I'll get it." Thalia opened the door to find the police standing there, a warrent in one's hands and handcuffs in another.

"Can I help you, officers?" I saw Thalia tense. She saw the handcuffs too.

Their eyes scanned the room and landed on me. "Percy Jackson," the one with the handcuffs said. "We need you to come with us." He then stepped in and put my hands behind my back and cuffed me.

"What's going on?" Thalia demanded. "Why are you arresting him?"

I was too shocked to speak. Was this because I took Annabeth to Montauk? Were her parents charging me with kidnap?

Annabeth must have had the same idea, because she sprung forward. "He didn't do anything!"

"We'll see." They led me out of the house. The one holding my arm had a tight grip.

One last look at the house showed Thalia, Nico and Annabeth standing on the porch, Annabeth's face filled with terror and guilt as they drove me away.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Percy)

"You guys better have a good reason for arresting me," I said grouchily, slouching in my chair. The last place I expected to be today was in an interrogation room at the police department.

The FBI agent sitting across from me leaned forward and laced his fingers together. "It wasn't an actual arrest, it was just protocol. We want to ask a few questions."

I snorted. "Protocol. Right. And about what?"

"Where were you last night between seven and twelve?"

I blinked, the question catching me off guard. "Montauk, and before you ask, yes I was with someone that could prove that."

"Alright, then let me ask you this: how old are you, Mr. Jackson?"

"Eighteen," I answered.

"And how old were you when Miss Dare died?"

"Sixteen."

"And what was your relation to Miss Dare?"

I swallowed. "She was my girlfriend. We'd been dating for a year."

"Okay." I could tell he was leading up to his real questions. "And was there anyone who could prove you were indeed at Montauk that night?"

I leaned back. "Of course. The guy who checked me in. Ask him, he'll tell you."

"Well we're gonna have a hell of a time getting him to answer," the FBI agent said.

A bad feeling was settling in my stomach. "Why?"

He pulled out some pictures and slowly placed them on the table in front of me. "He was murdered last night."

I swallowed hard, staring at the pictures in front of me. The guy was posed with one arm in front of his head and the other spread away from his body. "Why do you think this was the same guy that killed Rachel?"

"Because." He then placed another picture in front of me, and I had to grip the edge of the table. "They're posed the same way." It was Rachel. Her face was white and her legs were spread, a ball of green fabric by her leg. I looked closer and thought I was going to be sick.

"Is that her . . . ?"

The agent nodded. "No one knows except us and the police, but-"

"Please don't," I pleaded.

"I thought you had a right to know."

"Please . . ."

"Miss Dare was sexually abused."

I sprung up from the table and slid my back down the wall, my hands on the back of my neck.

"Mr. Jackson?"

"Give me a minute," I groaned, squeezing my eyes shut, trying to keep the image out of my head, of some sick bastard holding Rachel down and . . .

"I think he's going to be sick," a new voice said, a woman.

She knelt down in front of me and gently touched my knee. "Would you like some water?"

All I could do was nod.

"Give him some space," she told the agent.

"He didn't kill either of them," I heard him tell her as they left. "He didn't even know she was raped."

After they left I looked up. I had to get out of here. Go back home and pretend I was never here, that I didn't know . . .

The woman came back with the water. I lifted the cup to my lips and downed it in two gulps. "I want to go home," I croaked, not caring if I sounded like a little kid.

"Of course," she said gently. "You're free to go."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

Thalia, Nico and I jumped when the front door slammed shut. We shared looks and then raced out of the kitchen. Percy was standing in the living room. His face was white.

Thalia gasped. "Percy what happened? Are you okay?"

Suddenly it didn't matter that Percy and I weren't speaking. I rushed to him and hugged him. When he hugged me back - a little tight - I knew we were okay.

I pulled back to look at him. "What did they say?" I asked gently.

Percy just shook his head. "I can't." He swallowed. "I just-"

"Okay." I knew better than to push him.

Thalia hugged him too, then Nico.

"Want some coffee?" he asked. "We just brewed a pot."

Percy managed a weak smile. "Coffee would be nice."

So we went back to the kitchen with Percy in tow. We all sat down at the table with mugs and a pack of Oreos.

"You guys have a right to know," Percy sighed. "We promised not to keep stuff from each other."

"You don't have to," said Nico. "It's cool, man."

Percy shook his head. "I need to or I'll go crazy."

"Um," I shifted weight. "Should I-"

"Stay. Please." I tried not to jump when Percy grabbed my hand under the table. He squeezed my fingers. He told us what happened at the police department. All of us sucked in our breaths when he told us about Rachel. When Percy was finished Thalia had tears in her eyes. She took his other hand in her own.

"It shocked the Hades out of me, for sure," Percy said, and Nico snorted.

"Hades?" I asked, not getting it.

"Inside joke," Thalia explained.

"But there's no point in obsessing about it," Percy continued. "At least she didn't have to live with it for the rest of her life." There was silence around the table.

"So what about the Montauk guy?" Nico asked.

Percy shook his head. "It sucks. He was the only one who could've backed me up. Not even Rachel's parents or my mom knew where we were going to be."

"We didn't either," Thalia said pointedly.

Percy winced. "Sorry. You guys were away and-"

"It's okay, we forgive you. This time." Thalia grinned. "But next time we won't be so understanding."

"Right. Understanding, uh huh," Percy said sarcastically. Thalia and Nico smacked him, and just like that the dark cloud looming had disappeared.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

"Whatcha doing?" I asked. Percy was sitting on his bed staring at a picture in his hands. Although when I sat beside him and looked I saw it wasn't a photo at all but a painting.

"She painted this for me, as a gift," he said, sighing. The painting was of Percy and a redheaded girl I assumed to be Rachel. She had dark red frizzy hair and green eyes. She was arm in arm with Percy.

Just like before Percy took my hand. This time I squeezed back tightly. "Thank you," he said.

I gently bumped his shoulder. "Don't mention it, Seaweed Brain."


	15. Chapter 14: Rumors

*Chapter 14: Rumors*

(Percy)

At school the next day I got stares from pretty much everyone, including the teachers.

"Guess everyone found out about your visit with the police," Nico murmured. Suddenly he perked up. "Oh hey, there's Mel. See you guys later." After he left Annabeth took his place at my side.

"Just ignore them," she soothed.

"I hate this," I groaned. "First everyone stared because we started coming here. Then I got stares because of Drew telling everyone we were dating. Now I'm getting stares because everyone thinks I'm some sort of fugitive."

"Who cares what they think?" Thalia said from my other side. "They don't know the truth, so it doesn't matter."

"Yeah, of course. Right." But I had a feeling my day was going to get a lot worse.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

"Percy honey!" a voice said, a voice I unfortunately knew all too well.

"Drew," Percy said through clenched teeth. "I'm not in the mood. I'm hungry and I want to eat my lunch in peace. Without you."

"Are you alright?" she asked, ignoring his jab. "I heard you got arrested! How awful!"

I had to admit, Drew could act like a caring person when she wanted to. I maybe even would have believed her, if I didn't know her as well as I did.

"Yeah, awful," Percy said dryly. "So nice of you to care."

"Of course!" Drew flashed a dazzling smile, obviously missing Percy's sarcasm. We stood there for a few moments.

"Okay so . . . . bye." Percy grabbed my wrist and pulled me away. I couldn't help but smirk when I saw outrage on Drew's face as she stomped away.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

"Percy," Drew whined as Percy and I stood by his locker. "You've been ignoring me all day."

"Have I?" Percy muttered, shoving his book into his bag.

Drew pushed himself closer. "I just wanted to ask if you wanted to go see a movie this weekend?"

"I'm busy," was his reply.

"With?" Drew pushed.

Percy opened his mouth but didn't speak. His eyes flickered to me.

Drew saw this and her face turned red. "You're turning me down for _her?" _

I knew I had to do something, otherwise Percy won't ever get her off his back. She would stalk him until he either had to move away or be forced to go out with her. So I took his hand and laced our fingers. "Yeah, is that a problem?"

Drew's gaze flickered between Percy and our intwined hands. Her jaw clenched. "Not at all, hon," she said with false sweetness. She leaned in close, so close I could see the small freckles on her nose. "But just know I don't give up something I want without a fight."

I leaned close toward her, too. "Looking forward to it, _hon." _

Drew gave a mocking smile and leaned back. "Glad we understand each other." She flipped her hair and walked away.

"God I hate her," Piper said, Silena standing beside her.

"She needs to know when she's not wanted," Silena added. "So what did she say?"

"Well." Percy turned to them and grinned. "Thanks to Annabeth I now have a girlfriend." He held up our still intwined hands. "Let's see how long it takes for _that _rumor to spread around."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Percy)

Beckendorf caught up with me as I walked to seventh period.

"Dude, you're going out with Annabeth!" he exclaimed. "Congrats, man!" He clapped me on the back.

"Man, it's not real, it's just to get Drew to quit harassing me for a while," I told him.

"So . . . . you guys aren't really dating?" Beckendorf shook his head. "Crap. Guess I have to give Connor his money back then."

"Ha-ha, very funny."

He lightly punched my shoulder, which still kind of hurt since he was a lot bigger. "So are we on for this friday? Just the guys hanging out?"

"Yeah, totally."

"Cool." Suddenly he grinned. "We can take my car."

"You have a car?" I asked, wondering why he always rode with Silena.

"I just finished it. Building it, I mean," he said proudly.

I looked at him in amazement. "You built a car?"

He grinned again. "Well, yeah. Leo'd helped me. Before his mom died he used to help her a lot with that kind of thing."

"Oh." I didn't know Leo's mom died. No wonder he never talked about her. I don't know what I would do if I lost my mom.

"Gotta go, see you later," he said.

"See you."

Seventh period - thankfully the last class of the day - went by quickly. I met up with Annabeth by the gym, and together we walked to the car. I noticed that everybody was staring, so I took Annabeth's hand. Guess it got around that Annabeth and I were "dating."

"Got to play the part right?" I whispered to her.

"Your head is full of kelp," she told me. "I'll have to meet up with you later, I promised Silena I'd have dinner with her and her parents tonight."

"Kay." I kissed her cheek, and suddenly I was reminded of Montauk. I pulled back, trying not to look embarrassed. "Later."

"Later," she said, a little breathless. Her face was red.

We stood there in awkward silence for a few moments. Then she turned and walked away. I sighed in relief and got in my car to wait for Thalia and Nico. Guess we weren't as okay as I thought we were.

When I got home is when I knew things were going to get worse. The Big Three's limo was parked in the driveway.

"Uh oh," Nico said.

"This isn't good," Thalia muttered.

"Don't worry, it'll be fine." I smiled, hoping it was a convincing one and not one that said _I'm dead. _

We found my dad, Zeus, and Hades in the kitchen with mugs of tea on the table in front of them. When they saw me, Zeus and Hades grunted with irritation. Dad wouldn't look at me.

"Have a seat," he said, sipping his tea and staring out the window. We sat. I was at the head of the table, Thalia on my right and Nico on my left.

"So." Zeus laced his fingers together. "Give us one good reason why we shouldn't pull you three out of school immediately and ship you off to Japan."

"Why Japan?" Nico asked. Thalia meant to kick him but got me instead. I kept my mouth shut, but my eyes watered. I was going to have a bruise tomorrow, Thalia's combat boots were deadly to anyone who got to close.

"We were thinking of sending you there anyway," Hades jumped in. "Since school apparently has made you three into hooligans."

"You're adults, and you should behave as such," Poseidon added, looking pointedly at Thalia and me.

_You're not exactly treating us like adults, _I thought.

"But we like school," Thalia whined. "We've made so many friends and-"

Zeus put a hand up to silence her. "Perseus embarrassed us in front of the entire Manhattan mall. We can not just let this go."

"Then punish me," I blurted, starting to get annoyed. Did they always have to think of themselves? "But leave Thals and Nico out of it. Send me."

Poseidon's eyes darted to my face with anger. "Don't you dare talk to us like that."

"Sorry sir," I mumbled, deciding to play it safe.

"We will think about it, and get back to you," Zeus continued. "But I thought this whole public school idea was bad from the start. I believe it would be better for you to travel to Japan to learn the ways of the company-"

I mentally groaned. Here we go . . . The company this, the company that . . .

"And continue to be homeschooled."

"But we-" Nico started.

"No buts," Hades said harshly in his deep voice. "We will give our answer in a few days. We were foolish to ever listen to Sally." He and Zeus both glanced at my dad. I knew they thought this whole mess was his fault, about us attending Goode High, but they were pinning it on me instead, and on Thalia and Nico.

Thalia's blue eyes flickered. Her expression was calm, but I knew her too well. I knew she was about to go on a warpath.

"Let's go shoot some pool," I suggested. Grabbing hers and Nico's arms, I pulled them away from the table and away from our fathers.


	16. Chapter 15: Date Night

***Just a reminder that this story is far from over. Percy and Annabeth still have a **_**long **_**ways to go.***

*Chapter 15: Date Night*

(Annabeth)

"What are you playing at?" my dad demanded. I was packing up the rest of my stuff, and he was standing in the doorway with his arms folded across his chest.

"I told you, I'm leaving." I zipped up my duffel bag that was filled with my collection of books. Thalia, who was helping me pack, was grabbing my clothes from my closet, perfectly at ease. She apparently wasn't bothered by the tenseness in the air, or by the dirty looks my dad was giving her. She was probably used to it.

"So you're going to live with _her?" _he asked, jerking his head in Thalia's direction.

I nodded. "Yes. I can't stay here anymore. I'm eighteen and you can't stop me."

"I wasn't going to." Then he just left. Angry, I slammed the door shut, making sure he heard it. I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned around.

"I didn't know it was this bad," Thalia said softly. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," I told her, sighing. "This place has not ever been my home."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

"You ready for this?" I asked Thalia.

"Born ready." Thalia grinned. "I live for evil plots."

We set up a plan to finally get Grover and Juniper together. I just hoped they wouldn't be too shy and that it wouldn't work. I called Juniper to meet me at Thalia's house, and Thalia called Grover. We were going to set them up on a blind date.

We had everything ready. With the lights out the candles made a romantic atmosphere. The dining table had a white linen tablecloth with rose designs and a centerpiece bouquet of roses. Since they were eighteen I vetoed Thalia's idea of adding champaign, and decided on sparkling water instead. On a small table beside them sat a covered dish of enchiladas. In another was a giant piece of chocolate cake I was hoping they would eat together. It was a good way to end the night, sharing dessert with your date.

"Why didn't I think of that?" Thalia muttered to herself, observing the scene.

"For who? Nico and Melissa?" I joked.

"For Percy and . . . never mind." Grinning, she turned away. I narrowed my eyes at her back, knowing she was about to say Percy and _you, _as in me.

Suddenly we heard car doors slam.

"They're here!" Thalia grabbed my arm and pulled me into the bathroom, keeping the door cracked so we could see. The bathroom was across the hall and would give us a good view of the date.

"How will they know to come in?" I whispered.

"I left the front door cracked," she whispered back.

"What?" I squeaked. "Are you insane?"

"Shh!"

We heard footsteps go into the dining room.

"What is this?" Juniper's voice said. Luckily the bathroom was close enough to listen in. It didn't occur to me earlier, but . . .

"Thals, we're going to be trapped in here for a while, you do realize that, right?" I murmured in her ear.

"That's why I brought these." She pulled out a pack of cards. I groaned. We were in for a long night. All of the boys - except for Grover, thanks to us - went out to do whatever, so Percy and Nico won't be home for a while.

"The perfect way to spend friday night, hanging out in a bathroom playing cards."

"It could be worse." Thalia shrugged. "Now shh! I can't hear." We peeked through the crack.

"-Think we've been set up," Grover was saying.

"Should we just leave then?" Juniper edged closer to the covered dish and lifted the lid. "Wow, this looks amazing! And everything is set up so pretty."

"Are those enchiladas?" I could see Grover's mouth watering from here, and I face palmed. She comments on the setting and all he can think about is the food.

Juniper hesitated. "Well, we shouldn't let all this go to waste, especially if they did it for us." So they sat. They divided up the enchiladas and dug in. It was silent at first, but that was probably because they had their mouths full.

Then Grover cleared his throat. "So, pretty good, huh?"

Juniper smiled. "Yes, Annabeth is a good cook."

I beamed, and Thalia rolled her eyes at me.

"Thalia too. I'm guessing she helped with all this."

Thalia grinned. "Darn right I did."

"It's pretty obvious why they did this," Juniper said, taking a bite of her food.

"Yeah, I know." Grover played with his food, unable to meet her eyes. They spent the rest of the dinner trying to make small talk, to no avail. They both looked no more comfortable than when they first got here.

"They're too shy around each other," I groaned. "This is a disaster."

Then a miracle happened. Grover dropped food on his shirt.

"Oh man." Grover grabbed a napkin. "This is my favorite shirt."

"I can get it," Juniper said gently. She took the napkin, dipped it in her glass of water, and started to wipe off the stain. Her eyes traveled up and met his.

Thalia and I stared in awed shock. I felt like we were intruding, even though we were the ones who set this up.

"Thank you," he said quietly.

Juniper blushed. "You're welcome." She sat back in her seat and they finished eating, though they seemed a lot more comfortable around each other now.

Thalia and I got bored, so we started playing rummy in the bathtub to give the two some privacy. I was quick to quit though after Thalia won three times in a row. After she silently started doing a victory dance I debated whether or not to turn on the shower and soak her. But I didn't since it would blow our cover.

When dessert came - I was such a genius - they grabbed their forks and shared the piece of cake.

I grinned at Thalia and gave her the thumbs up. She poked her tongue out at me. When we heard the scraping a chair we both froze.

"I'll be right back, I have to use the bathroom," said Juniper.

I pushed Thalia back into the shower and closed the curtain just as Juniper walked in. We ducked low so Juniper wouldn't see our shadows.

Juniper was washing her hands when suddenly she spoke. "Annabeth . . . Thalia . . . if you guys can somehow hear me, or you're hiding in the shower like I'm suspecting you are, thank you. I owe you." Then she left, turning off the light but keeping the door cracked like it was before.

"Well," Thalia sighed. "Guess we just got busted. We aren't very good at being sneaky."

"No kidding," I mumbled. Peaking through the crack I saw that Juniper and Grover were leaving, hand in hand. I smiled. It was about time.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . .

(Percy)

When Nico and I got home Annabeth and Thalia were cleaning up from what looked like a date.

"Is there anything you two want to tell us?" I joked.

Thalia punched my shoulder. "Very funny-" She froze. Then suddenly she leaned forward and sniffed my shoulder. I tried to take a step back but Thalia grabbed my shirt.

"You've been drinking!" she said furiously. "And don't lie, I can smell it!"

I cleared my throat. "I wasn't drinking!"

"Ditto," Nico called from the kitchen.

"I got beer spilled on me." Thalia released my shirt.

"That's the lamest excuse I ever heard," she huffed.

"It's true!" I hoped Thalia wouldn't kill me. We all decided after Drew's party that we wouldn't drink again. It was just my luck that I got some spilled on me.

"The guy was crazy drunk, he was trying to pick a fight with Percy so Percy pushed him away. Then the drunk threw his beer at us, but it mostly got Percy," Nico explained.

Thalia narrowed her eyes, then sighed. "Alright, I believe you."

Beside her, Annabeth stiffled a laugh at Thalia's mother hen attitude. I glanced at her. She was wearing a dark gray T-shirt today, shorts, and her curly blond hair was pulled up into a ponytail. She didn't have on any jewelry except for some earrings, and no makeup, though she didn't need it. She didn't need flashy clothes or makeup for people to notice her. It was impossible not to.

I didn't realize I was staring until Annabeth said, "What? Do I have something on my face?"

"Oh, uh, no." I seriously hope my face wasn't red.

Thalia coughed. "So, um, I guess there's something we need to tell you, Annabeth."

Annabeth frowned. "What is it?" Nico and I looked at each other, and he shrugged.

Thalia sighed. "We, um, we might not be going to Goode High much longer," she admitted.

"What! Why?" Annabeth's eyes darted frantically from me to Thalia.

"Because or dads are jerks," Nico muttered angrily.

I shook my head. "It's my fault. I made a scene at the mall and embarrassed them in front of everybody."

Annabeth gave a tiny smile. "I know. I was there."

"We'll know their answer in another day or two," Thalia continued. "If they decide to pull us out of school we'll be heading for Japan."

"Yay," I said sarcastically. I was glad I spent some time tonight with my friends, or the boys, anyway. I'll have to hang out with the girls, too. I didn't know how much longer we'll have before we might have to tell them good-bye.

"Well," Annabeth said, "Even if it doesn't make much of a difference, I'll miss you." Her eyes traveled to me. "So much."


	17. Chapter 16: Chasing a Ghost

***Warning: mentions of sexual abuse and slight language.***

*Chapter 16: Chasing a Ghost*

(Percy)

"So, here we are again."

Poseidon laced his fingers together. Zeus and Hades remained in their stiff upright positions in their seats. Thalia, Nico and I sat at the end of the table, Thalia gripping each of our hands.

"If you've already made a decision, just let me say this." Thalia took a deep breath. "Percy and I are eighteen, don't we have a say?"

"No," Hades said coldly. Nico glowered at him. "You are our children and you will take over our business someday. You can't just run off and do whatever you want."

I stood up, coming really close to telling all three of them they could just go to Tartarus. "That isn't fair!"

Poseidon stood, too. "Perseus, be quiet and sit down!"

I fumed furiously. Thalia tugged on my shirt. "Sit down, don't argue," she pleaded. Surprising for Thalia. Normally it would've been her who argued. Slowly, I sat back down.

"We have decided that you three would be better off leaving Goode High," Zeus told us. We sat there in stunned silence. Annabeth, who was hiding upstairs, was probably listening, too. The Big Three's voices were loud and booming and not at all quiet. I think, out of all the people I met at Goode High, I would miss Annabeth the most.

It was silent around the table at first. No one had anything to say. Then finally Poseidon spoke.

"You will have until next week. Enjoy it while it lasts."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

I slid my back down the hallway wall and sat on the ground. They were leaving when they've only been here a month? I felt bad for eavesdropping, but it wasn't exactly hard not to hear.

This past month I've gotten to become close to all of them, Percy in particular. They got along well with everyone and tried to be as normal as possible and fit in.

Suddenly I heard footsteps on the stairs, and I sprung up from the floor and ran into the first room I came to, closing the door tightly behind me. Turning around, I realized I was in Percy's room. Blushing, I turned to leave, but before I could, the door opened.

Instead of looking angry, Percy just gave a sad half smile. "Hey, Wise Girl."

I swallowed the lump in my throat. "Hey." Geez, I sound like I swallowed a fly.

Percy closed the door behind him and sat on his unmade bed. "You know, the next time you're trying to hide the fact that you were listening, you might want to try dashing for another room," he joked.

I sat down beside him. "Thanks, I'll keep that in mind next time." Next time? There would be a next time? I mentally face palmed. Smooth, Annabeth.

He sighed, his shoulders slumped. "So . . ."

"So . . ." We sat there, not knowing what to say. I certainly would miss him, much more than I was willing to admit.

I cleared my throat. "So, when do you leave?"

"At the end of next week." He took a deep breath. "Japan. Pretty cool, huh?"

I managed a weak smile. "Yeah, that'll be great. Bring back a souvenir for me." Did I hear bitterness in my words? Or was that just sarcasm?

He looked at me. "I-" He swallowed. "I can-I mean I will-"

I covered his hand with my own. He turned his hand up and gripped my fingers tightly. We both looked up.

Putting my free hand around his neck, I gently kissed his cheek. His arm went around my waist, and we just sat there for a while holding each other in our weird embrace. He smelled like chlorine from the swimming pool, and his skin was warm.

I don't know how long we stayed like that, but after we finally pulled away, I felt cold without his warm body next to mine.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

"I hear you and Percy "broke up,"" Silena said the following Monday at school.

I sighed. "Yeah, we had to tell everyone we broke up since he'd be leaving Friday." I didn't look at her as I spoke. Knowing Silena she would see right through me and know that I was absolutely miserable. I hated that Percy was leaving. Stuffing my math book in my locker and shutting it, I walked with Silena to class.

"So how're Grover and Juniper?" I asked, trying to change the subject. Ever since their dinner date I noticed that they spent a lot more time together now, holding hands in public and going out on dates. I was glad they finally got together.

"Great! They are so cute! However . . ." Silena's voice dropped to a whisper. "Frank and Hazel are not."

"What happened?" I asked. I knew Silena and I were gossiping, but I couldn't help it. Besides, they were my friends.

"Apparently Hazel and Leo went to the movies, since Frank was busy," Silena explained.

"So? There's nothing wrong with going to movies with friends." Although Percy and I went one time . . . Thalia still hasn't let us hear the end of it.

"She didn't tell Frank she was going with Leo."

"Wow." I blinked, not knowing how to respond to that.

"I know right. I'm just staying out of it. Hazel and Frank will be okay, they always are."

"Poor Leo," I said softly. The poor guy had unintentionally gotten mixed in the middle without even meaning to.

"I know. Hey, Piper!" Silena suddenly called out to Piper, who was just passing by. While she and Piper chatted, I started reading, trying not to think of anything. No relationship problems, family problems, and certainly not a pair of sea green eyes.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Percy)

"This is hopeless," I grumbled. "We aren't getting anywhere."

"We have to," Luke pushed. "The police aren't doing a damn thing for Rachel, or the other guy that was murdered."

"The FBI probably has a lot more details about the case than we do." I looked up. "Think there's a chance we can get them to give us some info?"

Luke snorted. He leaned back and put his hands behind his head. "Oh yeah, just walk right up to them and ask. They'll be happy to willingly share."

I ignored the sarcasm. "It was just an idea, man. And besides-" I pulled the map closer. "It's like we're chasing a ghost. We need more if we're going to get anywhere."

"So what do you suppose we do?" he asked.

I studied the map. "Montauk was a few miles from the park where Rachel was found. The other guy - geez, I'm getting tired of calling him that. I'm just going to call him by his name. Mark Thomas was found in one of the cabins."

"Or more specifically, the one you'd stayed at when Rachel was murdered."

I didn't like Luke's tone. It sounded like he was accusing me. "What do you mean by that?" I glared at him. "You think it was my fault because I wasn't with her?"

"I didn't say that." He held up his hands. "Relax. I just meant that it can't be a coincidence that he was found specifically in that cabin, one week before the anniversary of Rachel's death."

"That's true . . ." I rubbed my face. I'd completely forgotten that it was almost the day of Rachel's death. "Okay, let's think. To - I mean when he-" I couldn't bring myself to say it. "When she was abused, he would've had to take her somewhere private."

"Or he had a car," Luke jumped in. "He somehow got her to get out of her car and into his."

"Or he snatched her and put her in his car. Not many people would be suspicious of a car pulled on the side of the road."

"But some would, and that's too risky. This guy would've wanted complete privacy, somewhere where no one could hear them." Man it was hard to be unattached and think of Rachel as a victim. Not to mention that once I was gone I wouldn't be able to find Rachel's murderer all the way from Japan.

"But that pegs another question: if Rachel was driving, where the hell is her car?" Luke pursed his lips.

He had me floored there. Either the guy stole it or it's in the middle of the ocean somewhere.

"And think about it." Luke straightened up. "He either walked, hitched a ride back to his car or-"

"He has a partner," I finished grimly. "Mark was a well built guy. He seemed like the type that could handle his own in a fight."

"Guns, Percy," Luke pointed out. "And knives. He could've snuck up on him any time Mark had his back turned."

I sighed and tilted my head back. "It's been a long night. We need to sleep."

"Alright." We gathered up the folder of the work we'd done and the map and put them in the safe in the back of my closet. No one knew about it - well except Luke - not even Thalia or Nico. Speaking of . . .

"Aren't your cousins going to be mad when they find out you're doing this?" Luke asked.

"Probably," I admitted. "But they'd think I was crazy. I can't tell them. Not yet, anyway." So much for telling each other everything.

Luke hesitated before putting a hand on my shoulder. "Thank you for helping me, Percy."

"I want to help Rachel as much as you do," I responded. I didn't entirely trust the guy, but it was true that he cared for Rachel, too.

Sometime after Luke left, Thalia, Nico, and Annabeth came home. They'd gone out to eat but I'd stayed behind to work with Luke. We watched TV for a little while, then went to bed. I just stared up at my ceiling, unable to sleep. Every time I thought of Rachel's green eyes they were replaced by stormy gray ones.


	18. Chapter 17: Goodbye

***Special thanks to Antonio Pinto's "Soul Inside" "Dying Soul" "Star Crossed" and "Kill Me" from ****The Host**** soundtrack for inspiring this chapter.* **

*Chapter 17: Good-Bye*

(Percy)

*Saturday*

"Dude!" Luke came storming into the house before I could even invite him in.

"Please, come in," I said pointedly, shutting the door. "What's going on?"

Luke glared at me. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Tell you what?" I asked. Luke had called me asking to come over, since the others had gone to a movie (which I also had to skip out on). He sounded urgent on the phone, and I was hoping he found out something. Apparently not.

"You were there!" Luke paced. "Obviously someone wants to frame you pretty badly-"

"There for what?" I interrupted. Luke was making no sense.

"You . . . don't know?" He stopped pacing and stared at me.

I was going to strangle him. "Know what?" I said irritably.

"You were there at Montauk the night Mark Thomas was found. Turns out he wasn't killed there, he was just dumped there."

"I-" I realized he was right. The same night Annabeth and I were there, Mark was killed. Either it was just a terrible coincidence or someone was trying to frame me. Except . . .

"I didn't plan on going to Montauk, I sort of just packed a bag and went." And took Annabeth with me, but I figured Luke didn't need to know that.

"So you and probably everyone around you is being stalked," Luke guessed. "The police are going to keep a close eye on you now."

"I'm their number one suspect," I grumbled. I rubbed my face, slouching in my chair. And to make matters worse, leaving here would make the police think I was skipping town because I was guilty. "Do you think after I left everyone around me would be safe?"

"Probably," Luke admitted. "You seem to be this guy's target. And so far he's only targeted one person really close to you. But chances are that won't last long. Next time it could be-"

"I know." Next time it could be mom, Nico, Thalia, Annabeth or any of my other friends I've made. I swallowed the lump in my throat. I couldn't let that happen. I wouldn't.

"I hate to say it, but maybe leaving is a good idea after all." Luke's tone was light, but by the way he spoke made it sound like he'd rather us be gone and out of the way rather than be gone and safe.

I could always hire a private investigator to follow him, but that would be kind of hard to do all the way in Japan.

"It seems so," I said. Luke just patted my shoulder and smiled.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Percy)

*Sunday*

"Here we go." Thalia sighed and dragged her suitcase down the stairs. Nico and I had packed up our stuff and brought it down earlier. Thalia was finally bringing down her last suitcase. The TV was wrapped up in bubble wrap and ready to go, and all of the furniture was covered with white sheets. We were going to leave the couches and beds and stuff here just in case we decide to come back someday. I hoped we would.

Annabeth would be going to live with Silena for a while, but hopefully soon she'll be able to get an apartment of her own. Silena, Beckendorf, Leo and the others either called or dropped by to say their good-byes.

A limo was waiting outside. The driver, David, put our stuff in the car while Thalia, Nico, and I went inside one last time to say good-bye.

"Bye, house," said Nico. "It was nice while it lasted."

"Very nice," Thalia added. We stood there, shoulder to shoulder, thinking of all the times we had in this house. Waking up to find all of our friends - despite being hungover, but still - in our living room. Or watching movies with Annabeth on the couch. Or when Thalia, Nico and I had a water balloon fight.

So many good memories here. We would take the best of them with us. Annabeth told us good-bye earlier and left just in case my dad showed up, but I wouldn't forget our last few moments.

_"Promise me we'll stay in touch," she said, wiping under her eyes. _

_"I promise." We couldn't say much else with Thalia and Nico in the room, but we didn't have to. Annabeth's eyes said it all. _

_She stepped forward and hugged me tightly. "I'll miss you, Seaweed Brain," she whispered. _

_"Me too, Wise Girl," I whispered back. We didn't realize we were holding each other for so long until Nico cleared his throat. Blushing, we broke apart. _

_"I guess I'll see you guys, then." Annabeth then walked out, shutting the door behind her. I watched out of the window as she climbed into Silena's car and drove away. I kept staring long after she was gone, until Thalia put a hand on my shoulder. _

"Right, Percy?"

Thalia's voice broke me of my thoughts. "Huh?"

"I said, we'll come back someday, right?" she asked.

I grinned and bumped her shoulder. "Of course."

"Good." She bumped my shoulder back.

"We should go, David is probably waiting for us." Nico and I grabbed the TV and together, we walked out of the house. None of us looked back. I didn't think we could.

As we drove away, Thalia grabbed mine and Nico's hands. I couldn't help but think how much safer everyone here would be since we were leaving. Since _I_ was leaving.

Taking out my phone, I stared at the picture Annabeth had set as my wallpaper. It was of me while I was eating, so naturally I was stuffing my face. Annabeth was posing beside me, giving the camera a peace sign. I stared at her face, her eyes, her hair and . . .

Hades, I missed her already.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

Silena knocked on the door of the guest room I was staying in.

"Come in."

Silena opened the door but didn't come in. She just stood there for a few moments studying my face. "Are you alright?" she asked softly.

No. "Yes." I tried for a smile. "I'm fine. Why?"

Silena closed the door behind her and walked in, sitting cross-legged on the bed beside me. "Your eyes are red, like you've been crying," she noticed.

"Have I?" I had been, but I didn't want her to know that.

"It's okay to miss him," she said quietly.

I glared at her. "I don't know what you're talking about. And I miss all of them, not just Percy."

"But you miss Percy the most."

I hated when she was right. It was true, I did miss him more than Thalia and Nico. But it's not like I was going to admit it.

"They're probably already gone," I murmured. "I wish he hadn't even come here in the first place."

"Don't you mean they?" said Silena smugly. I threw a pillow at her. She caught it and laughed, then sobered. "Come on, let's go get some ice cream. I know that always cheers me up." She hopped to her feet, pulling me up with her. As we passed the living room where Silena's dad was watching TV, I heard the new reporter speaking and I stopped to listen.

"Another body has been found. Twenty year old Luke Castellan was found thirty minutes ago by a group of girls in Upper East Side Manhattan. It was apparent that he'd been shot, the police believe Mr. Castellan had been purposely targeted . . ."

I didn't hear anything after that. My vision went black, and I felt someone grab me before I could hit the floor.


	19. Chapter 18: You and Me

***Sorry for the long wait. Thank you guys for being patient! And, for the first time, you get to see into the mind of the killer.***

Chapter 18: You and Me

(Percy)

I don't think I've ever been more miserable.

Nico, Thalia and I were just about to board the plane when the Big Three's assistant Macy came running up to us.

"What's going on?" I asked. We stared at her, hopeful. There was no way our dads changed their minds.

"The Big Three-sent me," she huffed, trying to catch her breath. I bet running in those heels didn't feel too good, either.

"What happened?" Thalia set her bag down. I realized we were blocking the entrance and moved off to the side so people could board the plane.

Still breathing hard, Macy told us. And I couldn't believe it.

Luke Castellan was dead. And it was my fault.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(Annabeth)

When I finally came to, both Silena and her dad John were hovering over me.

"What happened?" I croaked.

"Give her some space, sweetheart," John instructed. He and Silena leaned back. I sat up. They must have moved me to the couch at some point.

"You fainted," Silena explained, handing me a glass of water. I gratefully took it. "After what the news reporter said, about Luke ..." She trailed off. I looked away. So it was true. Luke was dead. Luke, who I've known since I was seven, one of my closest friends ...

I didn't realize I was crying until Silena hugged me. I clung to her and sobbed into her shoulder. John awkwardly patted my back before leaving to get some tissues.

Silena sat with me on the couch, the ice cream forgotten. I cried until I couldn't anymore and just lay there in Silena's arms.

"Today is a rotten day," Silena sighed. "But it'll get better."

It didn't feel that way to me. It felt like my heart was raw and exposed, waiting for someone else to come and damage it even more.

There was a knock on the door. We waited for John to answer it, neither of us wanting to move, but he was probably in the backyard. The knocking continued.

"I'll be right back." Silena slipped from my arms and got up.

I was staring at the floor. It was tile, a pretty blue color ...

Someone I presumed to be Silena sat on the couch in front of me. I continued to stare at the floor, counting the tiles. I got to twenty eight before the person finally placed a gentle hand on my waist. I jumped. This hand was too big yet too small to be Silena or her dad.

"Wise Girl," they whispered. I blinked. Only one person called me that.

Percy gently pulled me into a sitting position. I finally looked at him.

"Hey." My voice was dry and cracked. Percy didn't say anything, but he didn't need to. He just hugged me. I buried my face in his shoulder, never wanting to let him go.

We stayed like that for a long time. Eventually I ended up curled into Percy's side, our arms still around each other. I didn't cry again, I didn't even think I could. Now I was mourning.

Percy broke the stretched silence. "Lets find Silena. You need to eat something."

I didn't have much of an appetite, but let Percy pull me into the kitchen regardless. I was just glad he was here.

There we found everyone waiting for us. Piper, who was holding hands with Jason, Thalia and Nico, Juniper and Grover, the Stolls, Clarisse, Chris, Leo, Katie, Hazel and Frank, and finally Silena, who was passing out cookies.

"Annabeth." Piper hugged me with relief. The rest of the girls copied her. Thalia hugged me the tightest.

"What are you guys doing here?" I asked.

Hazel took a bite of her cookie. "We wanted to be here for you. To make sure you're okay."

I hugged her again. "Thanks. It means a lot." It really did. I couldn't have made better friends. Even Thalia, Percy and Nico.

Percy took a cookie from the plate. "Yeah, turns out we're staying, too," he said.

"You are?" Silena squealed. "Why?"

"Macy didn't explain, only that our dads changed their minds at the last minute." Thalia shrugged. "Don't know, don't really care as long as we get to stay!"

I started to smile but stopped when I noticed a shadow cross Percy's face. He didn't look as happy, and I was going to get to the bottom of it.

Grabbing his wrist, I dragged him out of the kitchen and into the guest room i was borrowing, shutting the door behind us.

"Are you okay?" He asked, placing his hands on my shoulders. "I know you knew Luke and all..."

Hearing Luke's name made my stomach twist in little knots, but I pushed down my feelings. Now it was my turn for interrogations.

"You wanted to leave," I started quietly. "I saw your face when Thalia said you were staying."

"That's not-" Percy started, but I quickly cut him off.

"I know what you're thinking. That Mark, Rachel, and now Luke's deaths are your fault." I could easily read people. It was a skill of mine. And I could tell that was how Percy felt, just by glancing at him. He wouldn't meet my eyes and kept biting his lip.

Taking a deep breath I stepped forward and placed my hands on either side of his face, forcing him to look at me. "You shouldn't. It wasn't your fault."

Percy blinked, his body slumped as if he were carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders, or at least a heavy burden he couldn't escape from.

It was then I realized: Percy and I were one and the same. We both felt like everything that happened was our responsibility, something that we had to fix. Percy did carry a burden, has been for over two years and always would until he found out the truth about the night Rachel was murdered.

Before I fully realized it, I stepped forward and kissed him. He kissed me back, but more gently. I wrapped my hands around his neck, and one of his hands buried in my hair. This time, I knew there was no going back. No more kiss-and-forget, or accidental drunken kisses. This time, it was the start of something I hoped would last forever.

...Line Break ...

(Unknown)

Too easy.

This was becoming too easy. I threw a dart at my dart board. It hit its required target, a picture of a certain black haired boy with green eyes dead center in his heart.

"Soon," I whispered to myself. "Soon." Percy Jackson would be dead, and everything would fall into place. It was only a matter of time.

Taking out a red marker, I carefully drew a large red X over Luke Castellan's picture. If everyone around Jackson had to die, then so be it. I would kill them all, starting with that pesky blond he was so fond of. I figured he would have learned his lesson by now after dear Rachel, but apparently not.

Taking out my list, I crossed off Luke's name. I wouldn't try to hit the Big Three. They were too well protected. I would be a fool to try.

I stared at my list. I would save Annabeth for last. I will get so much pleasure out of watching him plead for her life. But I couldn't get careless. If the FBI realizes the pattern of the kills, all centered around Jackson, they could sweep him away somewhere and I would never get my chance. So i had to bid my time, and hide in the shadows to seek my revenge. I planned and planned for two years, and now was the time to act.

The thought made me giddy, and I happily took another swig of my beer.

Soon.


End file.
